


Duplicity

by Elbeeinthewild



Category: NCIS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mild Language, No Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-20
Updated: 2017-10-20
Packaged: 2019-01-20 05:57:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 31,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12426420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elbeeinthewild/pseuds/Elbeeinthewild
Summary: In the wake of events surrounding Michael Rivkin’s death and Ziva’s return to Israel, almost everyone has something to hide. Some do so out of misplaced guilt. Some also have noble reasons for doing so and others…well, not so much.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Hinky_Hippo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hinky_Hippo/gifts).



> This story is an alternate universe (AU) version of events in Aliyah, Truth or Consequences, and beyond. Some events are as depicted in canon. Some are altered slightly to suit and work with the alternate storyline. 
> 
> In the interest of full disclosure, this story is not Vance or Ziva friendly. If you are fans of those characters and prefer not to see them depicted in a negative light, you should give this story a pass.
> 
> Spoilers for, and references from season 6, season 2-3 episodes, and possibly others sprinkled throughout.
> 
> Sincere thanks again to Hinky_Hippo for her exceptional cover art for 'Duplicity'. Her work is always stellar and suits the story so well. I honestly don't know how she does it, but I'll send her all the best hard cider and chocolate I can find to keep her doing it.  
> Many thanks to my lightning-fast beta, who continually and patiently deals with my OCD and insecure muse. Any remaining goofs are mine all mine.
> 
> PS: For those readers wondering what happened to my in-progress work "Chapter and Verse", rest assured I have not given up on that story. I plan to take it up again in the near future :)

  


~Israel, Mossad Headquarters, May~

 

Gibbs watched the large monitor showing the video feed from the adjacent room as Eli David fired his questions and barbs at DiNozzo. The corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk; Tony was doing him proud; employing his chosen strategy of annoying the arrogant prick with sarcasm and inappropriate humor. He turned in his chair slightly to hide his amusement from Vance, the arrogant prick in _this_ room. Vance was becoming increasingly angry as DiNozzo continued to goad Ziva’s father. Vance’s end game might have been diplomacy, but that sure as hell wasn’t part of DiNozzo’s plan.

 

Ziva joined them a moment later, crossed her arms and watched the exchange wordlessly. Her face was a cold mask but her dark eyes betrayed barely controlled anger. Gibbs’ attention snapped back to the room when David rose and walked toward Tony’s end of the table as if he were a predator stalking prey.

 

Tony seemed briefly thrown off his game by David describing the confrontation with Rivkin and the accusation that Tony provoked the rogue agent. His own temper flared as he watched David lean in close and essentially accuse Tony of killing Rivkin out of jealousy. He glanced at Ziva to gauge her reaction; _she_ had to have been the one that planted that idea in Eli’s head. She’d as much as told him the same thing. Ziva was understandably upset and grieving, but her attitude toward Tony was irrational and the assertions of jealousy were ludicrous. Ziva needed to open her eyes about Rivkin’s motivations for being in the U.S and how her _own_ actions looked in this situation. She watched, almost mesmerized as her father put Tony through the wringer.

 

 _Come on Tony;_ _you can do this_ , he thought. _Don_ _’t let him get the upper hand on you_.

 

Tony stared straight ahead and defended himself with his own summary of the confrontation; “It was kill or be killed,” he finished decisively.

 

Gibbs tensed as he watched David circle behind Tony.

 

David placed his hands on the agent’s shoulders and squeezed brutally as he spoke, “If that were true, my friend, you would be dead.”

 

Tony grimaced and winced, clearly in pain from having bruises and the broken arm jostled, but he continued to speak. Even exhausted and in pain, he taunted the elder David until the man’s control finally broke. Gibbs stiffened as he grabbed Tony by the throat and squeezed; the action putting a fleeting smile of satisfaction on Ziva’s face before she managed to hide it. Vance’s eyes narrowed at the move and then his expression shifted into something near to admiration as DiNozzo neatly manipulated David into an admission of guilt, all while David had a threatening hand on his neck.

 

Surprise and a grudging respect colored Vance’s voice as he watched DiNozzo turn and gaze meaningfully into the surveillance camera lens. “Well I’ll be damned.”

 

Ziva was clearly shocked and outraged at her father’s confirmation that Rivkin was in the States acting on his orders. Her face flushed with anger, she turned and stalked out of the room.

 

As soon as she was out of earshot Gibbs rose and turned on Vance. “What the hell, Leon!” he hissed. “You just stood there and watched David manhandle your agent! How far were you willing to let him go?”

 

“He can handle it. Isn’t that what you told me?” Vance asked smugly.

 

“Whose side are you on, anyway?”

 

“Diplomacy, Gibbs,” Vance reminded, unrepentant at having put DiNozzo in that position. “Your boy did alright for himself.”

 

“He _did_ , but that doesn’t make what you allowed to happen in there okay,” Gibbs asserted. Throwing Vance’s own words back at him; Gibbs went on, “He’s done enough of _taking one for the team_. If anyone else here lays a hand on DiNozzo in the name of _diplomacy,_ you’ll all be answering to SecDef, the State Department, and me…” He sure as hell didn’t trust SecNav after their recent conversation in his basement and his revelations about Vance and his supposedly faked service jacket records. Davenport had an agenda and it obviously involved plans to make use of Vance and his questionable contacts. It made Davenport suspect. He’d likely either cover for Vance, or completely distance himself from any negative press.

 

Gibbs paused, letting that sink in. His voice was low and threatening when he spoke again, and he didn’t give a damn how Vance felt about it. “You should probably be more worried about _me_.” With that thinly veiled threat, Gibbs turned on his heel and left, hoping to find some much needed coffee. He also needed to track Ziva down and find out where her head was at. She was furious and her tendency toward aggression and acting out in anger made her unpredictable.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Vance had been walking the halls of Mossad headquarters for a while, searching for some sign of Gibbs and DiNozzo. He knew Gibbs would make good on his earlier threat and no sooner than he’d decided to keep closer tabs on his people than the troublesome agents had both disappeared. He’d been getting some curious glances and expected to be challenged at any time, knowing that being a personal guest of Director David would only go so far. His suspicions were proven correct as he saw Officer Hadar approach.

 

“Is there something I can help you find, Director Vance?” he queried politely.

 

“Officer Hadar,” Vance greeted with a nod. “I’m looking for Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo. Our transport back is leaving earlier than expected; I wanted to let them know.”

 

Hadar looked conflicted for a moment, and then seemed to come to a decision. “I believe I can be of assistance. Please follow me, Director Vance.”

 

Vance followed, a bit confused by the confident officer’s suddenly uncertain demeanor. He looked around and recognized the hall as the same one he’d been escorted through earlier. “We’re going to the Director’s office? DiNozzo is there?” he asked in trepidation.

 

“Not exactly Director Vance, but there _is_ something there you need to see.”

 

“And that is?”

 

Hadar rubbed his neck where Ziva had put him in a choke hold earlier, and carefully considered his words. “Ziva intends to return with you. Director David wishes for his daughter to stay here. Until she regains a measure of objectivity and control _and_ comes to terms with Michael’s culpability in his own death, I believe that is for the best,” Hadar explained. “Perhaps what you are about to see will compel you to support him.”

 

Not for the first time, Vance cursed the inability of these people to speak plainly when the situation called for it. It came with the territory, he supposed. Mystified, he followed Hadar into Eli’s outer office.

 

Earlier, Hadar had been in the surveillance room tracking the movements of the Americans via the many cameras throughout the building and on the grounds. He watched as Agent DiNozzo sought Ziva out to talk; watched as the confrontation turned heated, then in a blur of movement Ziva attacked and took the injured agent down to the concrete _hard_. He held his breath as Ziva drew her weapon and shoved it first in DiNozzo’s chest and then his thigh, finger on the trigger the whole time. Then as quickly as it had begun, the confrontation was over. He released the breath he’d been holding as Ziva stood and stalked away, fury evident in every line of her body.

 

He shook his head. Ziva’s behavior made her as much of a liability as Michael had been. Mossad would have an international incident to deal with if another American agent was murdered at their hands. Director David had his own reasons for wanting her to remain, but clearly it would be inadvisable for her to return. She would not be able to serve Mossad’s interests, or anyone else’s for that matter, with her control fractured like this. It also didn’t bode well for DiNozzo’s safety considering the level of anger and resentment she currently held toward him.

 

He was further disconcerted when Director David requested a copy of that portion of the surveillance video to view in private for his own amusement. He’d also watched the live feed from the surveillance room and seen how DiNozzo neatly maneuvered the Director into admitting Rivkin had been acting on his orders.

 

The director had vastly underestimated the American agent; judged him by Rivkin and Ziva’s less than objective reports. ‘Agent Meatball’ as they derisively referred to him, proved to be far more cunning than the director expected. Obviously, Ziva wasn’t alone in her bitter resentment toward DiNozzo. Perhaps if Vance saw this video, it would alter his intention to allow Ziva to return to the U.S. with them.

 

Now, in David’s outer office, he held his finger to his lips indicating Vance should remain silent. When he got a quick nod in return, he stepped aside and pointed to the inner office door, which was ajar.

 

Vance stepped forward and peered carefully inside. He saw Eli in profile, absorbed in the large video monitor on the wall near his desk. He barely suppressed a gasp as he watched a shocking assault on DiNozzo play out onscreen, by none other than his partner. _Oh Hell_ , he thought. Eli watched in grim satisfaction as the onscreen Ziva stood and stormed out of view, then hit replay.

 

Eli was so absorbed in the drama unfolding on the screen he didn't detect their approach. Hadar's mouth tightened at the lapse in situational awareness that could be deadly for someone in the director's position. More proof for the argument that the situation around Rivkin, and both the Davids’ loss of objectivity was a significant distraction. He felt vindicated in his decision to make Vance aware of the altercation between Ziva and Agent DiNozzo.

 

Vance turned back to Hadar and nodded again. Hadar pushed the door open and allowed him to enter first. Eli jumped as he pasted on a smile and spoke.

 

“When Officer Hadar was kind enough to escort me back here Eli, I didn’t realize there was going to be entertainment,” he said drily.

 

Eli paused the video, and then turned toward them with a smug expression. “Yes well, Ziva gets that fiery temper from her mother.” Eli gave Hadar a pointed look. Hadar nodded and returned and to the outer office to wait, giving the two men privacy.

 

 _And no small amount of it from her father as well_ , Vance thought to himself. His mind whirled with the implications of this video, and the possibility of using it to his advantage. If he played his cards right, it could solve all manner of problems, and maybe even help serve to get him out from under his debt to Eli.

 

It had been a mutually beneficial alliance for the most part, but Eli occasionally would push the boundaries and ask for intelligence Vance had no business providing to a foreign government. When he balked, Eli could always be counted on to bring up that damn op in Amsterdam and the fact that Eli saved his life, just as he’d done in their earlier conversation.

 

His plan to even the playing field between them hinged on whether or not Gibbs knew about this. He also needed to pretend he was in agreement with Eli, when in reality he was appalled both at the altercation and Eli's enjoyment of the recording. Eli's reaction to being out-maneuvered by DiNozzo of all people, and in his own 'house' had been pretty well hidden until now. Time to cover his ass and employ some of the political savvy he was so well-schooled in.

 

"It's a good thing Gibbs isn't aware of this" he hedged, peering closer at the paused video and allowing an amused expression to steal over his features.

 

"Why are you so certain he isn't, the way he's been skulking about my building as if he owns it?" Eli returned in an irritated voice.

 

"He'd have confronted me about it already," Vance assured. "Gibbs is furious about you manhandling his protégé. This?” he shook his head dramatically. “It will only escalate the situation further and may prompt Gibbs to initiate actions that will be, let’s say...inconvenient. For both of us."

 

"Who runs your agency anyway, Leon…you or Gibbs?"

 

"Oh, believe me, there's no doubt of that now. After all, Gibbs protested vehemently, but I brought DiNozzo here as a favor to you when you asked. I didn't intervene during your _interview_. I'm on your side here Eli, but the rules are different for us and Gibbs will make use of those rules if it suits him."

 

"Hmm," Eli replied with a non-committal nod. "Yes, my friend. I am again reminded we come from different worlds indeed. You have a solution?"

 

Vance paused as if in thought. "Give me a copy of the video." he requested.

 

Eli's eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion. "Why should I do you this favor?"

 

"Let's be frank. This isn't a favor. It's damage control that benefits us both," Vance said pointedly. "You realize Ziva intends to return with us, don't you?" Vance asked, and watched the anticipated displeasure appear on Eli's features. Yes, that was a hot button alright.

 

"You want Ziva to remain here, away from Gibbs and the others' influence. You want her to come back to Mossad and put an end to her divided loyalties. We both want people to assume Rivkin was rogue, and not carrying out your orders on our soil. In light of recent events, SecNav is on the fence about continuing the liaison position. He can be convinced either way depending on what I tell him when we return."

 

Vance paused then played his cards. "This video evidence will convince SecNav to go along with eliminating the liaison position, and certainly he'll not support bringing Ziva back in any capacity. More importantly," Vance emphasized, "it will sway Gibbs and the others to let her go without a fight." In light of Gibbs’ threat to go to State and SecNav if DiNozzo received further rough handling here, Vance had no intention of allowing him to see this video. In fact, no one would see this video unless it benefited _him_ , but Eli didn't need to know that.

 

Vance kept a neutral expression as Eli met his eyes with a dark, penetrating gaze, and scrutinized him for a long moment. Apparently satisfied with his sincerity, Eli pulled a flash drive from the USB port of the monitor and handed it to him without comment. He nodded his acceptance of their unspoken agreement, suppressing the feeling of triumph. He had his bargaining chip.


	2. Chapter 2

Ziva stood alone on the hot tarmac, humiliated by her own miscalculation and knowing her father and the others were watching from a distance. She felt foolish standing there with her bag in hand as Gibbs strode purposefully toward the back of the plane and jumped onboard. She could still feel the soft kiss goodbye on her cheek; Gibbs' answer to her ultimatum about Tony. She watched him give a thumbs' up to the loadmaster and then belt himself into one of the seats opposite Tony.

 

Her eyes narrowed as they shifted to Tony. After a brief exchange with Gibbs, he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the side of the plane. Her fury rose again as she realized he must have told Gibbs of their confrontation and turned him against her. One more thing Tony should be made to answer for. The rear ramp rose slowly, steadily obscuring her view of Tony in the darkening plane interior. It put a painful exclamation point on Gibbs' choice and his decision to leave her behind.

 

She watched as the cargo plane taxied and took off, never turning her eyes away until it became a dot in the distance and ended this chapter of her life. Pushing down the mortification and anger ignited by Gibbs’ rejection, she pasted on an emotionless mask. She turned to face her father and the expected smug contentment at her presence was plain to see. She felt adrift, anchor-less. In an ideal world, she wouldn’t have needed Gibbs and NCIS. Being back in Israel with her father should have felt like home and safety, but it wasn’t an ideal world. In actuality, being here felt more like a trap about to be sprung… Even worse, it was a trap she was beginning to see that she’d helped set herself.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Eli observed the exchange between Gibbs and Ziva carefully. He smiled in satisfaction as Gibbs turned and boarded the plane, leaving Ziva standing there, bag in hand. Leon must have kept his promise to make Gibbs aware of Ziva’s attack on DiNozzo, and convinced him to leave her behind. Now Ziva would be returned to the fold where she belonged.

 

Eli waited as Ziva watched the plane disappear then turned and strode toward him. Her features were composed but her movements stiff with anger. He would channel and use that anger to serve their purposes.  He would send her back to Mossad where she would earn her place once again, perhaps even complete Michael’s ill-fated and disastrous mission. Ziva would take up the task of proving where her loyalties lay once and for all.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Tony leaned back feigning sleep, uncomfortably aware of Vance’s eyes settling on him from time to time. What the hell was that all about, anyway? Vance was probably still pissed at him for this whole clusterfuck. He just couldn’t bring himself to give a damn right now. He felt awful and wasn’t sure if it was more from the pain of his injuries or the overwhelming guilt over Ziva’s absence. Gibbs hadn’t seen fit to answer his ‘one short’ query, instead giving him an inscrutable look and flicking his eyes toward Vance before settling into his own seat.  Fine…message received. He’d corner Gibbs about it later when the Toothpick wasn’t around.

 

By the last half of the long flight, he was well and truly miserable. His injuries from the fight with Rivkin and the new ones from Ziva’s little ‘demonstration’ throbbed and ached relentlessly.  A few more hours and he’d be home where he could give in to the bone-deep fatigue and pain that dogged him since this whole debacle started.

 

A movement in his peripheral vision caught his attention, and he watched through slitted eyes as Vance rose from his seat. He turned pointedly away, hoping the man was just standing to stretch his legs. He got a sinking feeling as Vance walked toward him, and couldn’t help but tense as the man settled on the seat next to him. A fleeting glance at Gibbs showed him still asleep, his body rocking ever so slightly with the movement of the plane.

 

Vance assessed him for a long moment while he fought not to squirm under the scrutiny. “Are you alright, DiNozzo?” he asked in a low voice, trying not to wake Gibbs.

 

Whoa. Not what he expected. “I’m fine, Director. Something you need?”

 

“I doubt you’re _fine_ , but I won’t argue the point. I’d like to see you when we get back to NCIS.”

 

 _Here it comes_ , thought Tony; _I’m going to be fired_. Damn it, he was too tired and sore to deal with this.

 

Vance saw a flicker of apprehension on his agent’s face and was quick to reassure him. “It’s not what you think, DiNozzo, and nothing you need to worry about.”  With that, Vance stood and walked to the cockpit to speak with the flight crew.

 

“Well, that was comforting… _not_ ,” Tony mumbled under his breath. As he settled back in his seat and tried to relax again, a voice came from the other side of the plane. 

 

“What did Vance want, Tony?”

 

He looked over to see Gibbs still with his eyes closed and smirked. The sly bastard was probably awake that whole time.

 

“I suspected you were awake, Boss,” Tony replied, leaning forward and neatly brushing aside the question. “That was sneaky. I’m not sure our esteemed director would approve.”

 

“No deflecting, Tony.”

 

“He was checking on me. Wasn’t that nice of him? He likes me I think,” Tony answered with one of those bright, wide grins on his face; only this one didn’t reach his eyes.

 

“Mmm-hmm.” Gibbs’ raised eyebrow spoke volumes. 

 

Tony huffed, giving in to Gibbs’ unspoken prodding. “Asked if I was ok and said he wants to see me when we get back. He didn’t say why; just that it wasn’t something to worry about.”

 

“Then don’t worry about it,” Gibbs advised. “He’s not pissed with you anymore. You impressed him in there with David. Vance underestimated you and he’s looking at you with different eyes now. Besides…I’ve got your six, so if something is said I should know about, I _do_ want to hear it,” Gibbs said emphatically. Tony nodded, grateful for Gibbs’ support.

 

Gibbs pulled a bottle of pills from his pocket and shook out two. “Now, I want you to take the damn pain pills Ducky gave you for your arm.” 

 

Tony scowled, but the look on Gibbs’ face told him he wasn’t taking no for an answer. “One,” he bargained.

 

Gibbs sighed and put the second pill back in the bottle. “Fine,” he agreed, happy at the compromise. “There’s no need for you to worry about this, and certainly no need for you to be in pain, Tony.”

 

Tony accepted the pill and dry swallowed it with a grimace. “The only thing I’m worried about now is whether or not being on Vance’s radar is good or bad. I think I liked it better when he ignored me,” Tony muttered, leaning back to try and get some rest.

 

 _Me too_ , Gibbs thought to himself as he watched Tony close his eyes and settle back against the seat.

 

Vance came back from the cockpit later, surreptitiously checking on his agents before intentionally taking a seat further away from Gibbs. He noted Gibbs was now awake and watching DiNozzo, whose good arm was crossed protectively over the injured one. His head lolled slightly to one side, indicating he was sleeping.

 

The flight crew told him there were less than two hours remaining in the flight. Before they landed, he hoped to glean information from Gibbs about how much he knew of Ziva’s actions in Israel, and his intentions. To that end, he made no attempt to hide the fact that he also was watching DiNozzo from time to time, knowing it would catch Gibbs’ attention and draw him into a conversation.

 

His gamble on the extent of Gibbs’ protective feelings toward the younger man looked like it was about to pay off. He leaned back, disinterest on his features as Gibbs unbelted himself and made his way over to the seat next to him.

 

“Something you want to share, _Leon_?”

 

“Much as I’d like to be, I’m not a mind-reader Gibbs.  Is there something specific you’d like to know?” he asked drily.

 

“What’s with the interest in DiNozzo all of a sudden?” he asked. “You planning on putting him through the wringer some more when we get back?”

 

“And if I were?” Vance challenged.

 

“Like I said; he’s taken enough hits for the team over this fiasco with Rivkin and Mossad. I want your assurance that it’s done.”

 

“Depends on DiNozzo,” Vance answered, inclining his head toward the sleeping agent.

 

“How so?”

 

Vance threw out his bait. “It depends on if he intends to make a complaint about the rough handling he received from Director David. Or if _you_ intend to, for that matter.”

 

“You worried that DiNozzo or I will make noise about you allowing Eli David to assault him? Yeah,” Gibbs said sardonically, “I can see how that would affect your little unholy _alliance_.”

 

Annoyed at Gibbs’ perception, he deflected. “Don’t worry Gibbs. I’m satisfied how things stand with that. DiNozzo did well but you were right; I allowed it to go too far.” Vance chose his next words carefully. “He’d be justified in making a complaint about what happened there. I would appreciate the courtesy of knowing if either of you intend to do that.”

 

Gibbs scrutinized him a moment while Vance fought his discomfort at being studied and assessed by that intense blue gaze.

 

Gibbs wondered what happened to change Vance’s attitude. He’d gone from being smug about his decision to allow Tony to be interrogated, to almost apologetic. Gibbs didn't trust this shift, but he’d give Vance the reassurance he seemed to be looking for. For now, anyway.

 

“Nah,” Gibbs finally answered. “It’s not DiNozzo’s style any more than mine. He’ll let it slide and since nothing else happened, so will I.”

 

Though he tried to conceal it, Vance looked relieved and so Gibbs couldn’t resist toying with him a bit. “If that were his intention, I’m _pretty sure_ we’d both know about it by now,” he smirked as he rose and went back to his own seat.

 

Vance was pretty damn pleased; his plan was working out better than he’d hoped. Gibbs was hedging simply to annoy him. If Gibbs knew about Ziva attacking DiNozzo, it would have come up. Whatever reasons Ziva had to stay, it wasn’t because Gibbs was aware of her violent behavior toward her partner. It seemed as though Eli was successful in influencing Ziva to stay and Vance was pleased not to have to use his bargaining chip so soon.

 

Gibbs allowed the Director his small victory. Vance had an agenda as always seemed to be the case, and he wondered just how much the Davids had to do with it.  Acting so accommodating to Tony all of a sudden was out of character for Vance, to say the least. There was something more behind it than he was saying and it sure as hell wasn’t concern for Tony.  What the hell was Vance up to now?


	3. Chapter 3

~Washington DC, NCIS Headquarters~

 

Unobserved from his vantage point on the landing above the darkened bullpen, Vance watched DiNozzo. The clearly exhausted agent was half-heartedly poking at his keyboard, apparently checking email while waiting for Vance. The timing of their return from Israel couldn’t have worked out better; no one was here at this late hour. They’d all rode back to headquarters together in an agency sedan, intending to pick up their cars and head home for a shower and a couple hours’ sleep before returning to the office. The ride from Andrews had been awkward and quiet. He was perturbed by Gibbs and DiNozzo exchanging significant looks from time to time; communicating without words as they often did, and seemingly each satisfied with what they found in the other’s meaningful glances.

 

Once they’d reached the garage, DiNozzo headed inside to wait for Vance. Gibbs was frowning as he watched his SFA shuffle slowly into the building with slumped shoulders and he hesitated, clearly considering following him.

 

Vance could see that Gibbs wanted to be part of this conversation and he was going to nip that in the bud right now. “Gibbs,” he said firmly, “you don’t need to be here for this. Feel free to grill him about our conversation tomorrow but as I told you, there’s no reason for either of you to be concerned.”

 

Gibbs gave him another one of those intense looks, and it was one he had no trouble reading for a change. ‘ _I don’t trust you as far as I can throw you,’_ the look clearly conveyed, even if Gibbs wouldn’t go so far as to say it aloud _._ Vance had felt relief as Gibbs gave a curt nod, and turned toward his own vehicle.

 

Now Vance was ready to test the waters with DiNozzo. Remembering how ill-at-ease the younger man had been with him on the plane, he decided a chat in the bullpen instead of his office might make for a less defensive posture. He circled the landing and headed down the stairs, planning to talk to DiNozzo on his own ‘turf’. 

 

Apparently lost in thought, DiNozzo didn’t notice Vance coming down the stairs and stopping next to his desk. He jumped in surprise and his face blanched in pain at the sudden movement. Recovering his composure quickly, DiNozzo started to rise and asked, “Are you ready for me to come up now, Director?”

 

Vance held up a hand, “Relax, DiNozzo.” He casually propped himself on the edge of David’s desk and leaned back. “No reason we can’t talk here. Are you feeling alright?” he asked, throwing a note of concern in his voice.

 

“I’m fine, Director. Uh…you wanted to see me about something?”

 

“Three things, actually.”

 

Tony fervently wished the director hadn’t felt the need to do this tonight. Between exhaustion, pain, and stress of the last couple days, he was near his physical limit. His mind felt sluggish; an after effect of the pain pill Gibbs had forced on him during the plane ride back. He was in no shape to fence with Vance right now, but it seemed he had little choice. “Three things, sir?”

 

“Three,” Vance confirmed. “First and foremost, I owe you an apology.”

 

Tony looked over at Vance, shocked. He was glad he’d been seated. “An apology?” he parroted.

 

“Yes, for the treatment you were subjected to. I let it go too far, and I’m sorry for that. I’d like you to know I had no idea those things would happen, but I should have intervened on your behalf.”

 

Tony’s eyes went a bit flinty at that. “So why didn’t you?”

 

“For the same reason I gave Gibbs; diplomacy. It’s no excuse, which brings me to the second thing.” Vance was about to take another big gamble, and hoped Gibbs knew his agent as well as he proclaimed to. “If you wish to make a formal complaint, I won’t stand in your way and I will ensure it is routed appropriately.”

 

Tony was dumbfounded and tempted to start looking for pods in NCIS’ basement. His brow furrowed in confusion, he looked up at pod-Vance and asked, “You think I want to file a complaint?”

 

“I don’t know, Agent DiNozzo,” he answered. “I am saying if you _do_ , you may do so with my support and without fear of repercussion. Should I be expecting one?”

 

Bewildering didn’t even begin to cover Vance’s solicitous behavior. In spite of it, there was no way in hell he’d be swayed to trust the man who’d thrown him to the wolves just the day before.

 

Instead of answering, he smiled wryly. “Should I ask what the third thing is, before I answer you, Director?”

 

_Ah_ _…not as off-guard as I thought he might be_ , Vance thought. He’d still need to tread carefully, and remember that he was dealing with the man that while under duress, had so neatly maneuvered Eli into admitting something he did _not_ want known. Ironically, it was something that Vance would stand to benefit from. No; in spite of his fatigue and far from ideal physical condition, DiNozzo hadn’t entirely lost his edge.

 

Vance again did his best to project concern for his agent’s well-being as he spoke. “The third thing is I’d like your injuries re-checked.”

 

Tony reached up with his good arm and reflexively rubbed his throat. He felt the swelling and heat of bruises where Eli David had grabbed him in a near-chokehold. He hid the fact that his arm, shoulder, and back ached abominably after the jarring impact with concrete. “It’s nothing, Director. Ducky can check my arm again.”

 

“Doctor Mallard isn’t here, and I’m not just talking about your arm. I’m aware of the… _confrontation_ between you and your partner,” he said, again feigning concern. “I’ve discretely made arrangements for you to be seen at the hospital that treated you after the fight with Rivkin. The same physician just happens to be on duty again tonight.

 

Tony felt his jaw drop. _How the hell did he know about that? Jesus; did Gibbs know?_ He ignored the politely worded directive to go back to the hospital as guilt rose up, almost choking him. “Is _that_ why? You and Gibbs left her behind for _that_?” He sat back in shock. The thought of her under Eli David’s thumb again in her current emotional state because of _that_ ; it made him queasy.

 

“You’re jumping to conclusions, Agent DiNozzo.” Vance chided. “No, that most certainly is not why. I’m not even sure Gibbs is aware of it. Your loyalty is commendable, but it seems Director David was successful in convincing her to stay for the time being.”

 

Tony jumped on the opening. “For the time being…you’d let her come back?”

 

“Do you really think you two can work with her again, given her actions around Rivkin and her attitude toward you?” Vance asked, leaning forward in interest.

 

“I honestly don't know, Director. If she can recover her objectivity, it’s possible. But I don’t want to be the one responsible for torpedoing her chances to return at some point.”

 

_Oh, she’s done a fine job of that all by herself_ , Vance thought.  As far as he was concerned, Eli’s daughter was where she belonged and ceased being politically useful to him when she allowed herself to be caught aiding and abetting a Mossad spy on US soil. He’d covered for her, not to protect _her_ but to save face and protect his position. The fact that her father manipulated the situation had no bearing. If the full truth came to light about his own involvement with Eli David, and about Rivkin and Ziva’s actions, it could sink his career.

 

Eli truly had been a fool to trust him with the very bargaining chip that helped put him in charge of this situation. Along with the damning evidence he’d gathered from the Rivkin matter, he could use the video to both sway Eli and coerce Ziva into working for him, should Gibbs and the powers that be decide to allow her to return. Everything depended on Gibbs not going through with his threat to talk to SecNav and on DiNozzo _not_ making waves.

 

“Well,” Vance hedged, “there are details that would need to be worked out.”

 

_Filing this complaint would close the door on that possibility_ , Tony thought as he considered Vance’s answer. Tony had no interest in doing anything that would further anger Ziva and didn’t want to act on what happened in Israel. Filing a complaint would serve no purpose and would do nothing to resolve the guilt he felt about his role in her decision to stay behind.

 

Then there was Gibbs. He wasn’t entirely sure Gibbs would believe what happened given his long-held soft spot for Ziva, and the debt he owed her. If there were a chance of clearing the air or at least coming to some sort of understanding with her, Gibbs could _not_ find out what happened between him and Ziva.

 

When it came right down to it though, no matter what Vance said to the contrary, he didn’t trust that the man wouldn’t hold it against him if he filed a complaint. He might not have Gibbs’ preternatural ‘gut’ feelings, but his own instincts told him _something_ was off here.

 

“So, the complaint?” Vance looked at him expectantly, waiting for his answer.

 

“No; that won’t be necessary Director… There’s really no sense in it anyway since she didn’t return with us. I’m willing to drop the matter if there are no repercussions over the case aimed at me from Director David and Mossad.”

 

Vance nodded, hiding his relief. DiNozzo appeared to have his own personal reasons for not wanting any of the others to know what happened. Whatever his reasons, they were compelling enough that he would even keep it from Gibbs of all people, and that played into his plan perfectly. He had no intention of Ziva being allowed back but if it happened, he had the video. “There is nothing to fear on that front, DiNozzo,” Vance affirmed.

 

_Yeah, right_ , Tony thought. “I’ll be blunt,” he began coolly; “You tossed your agent into the lion’s den out of deference to your friendship with the head of a foreign intelligence agency,” Tony challenged. “I’m not you; I have reasons to be suspicious of his motives and not a single one that says I should trust him, so I have to trust _you_.”

 

Vance was incensed both at DiNozzo’s candor and the borderline disrespect, although he gave no outward sign of it. “Understood. Now, for the third matter…are you ready to go?” He asked, changing the subject smoothly. At DiNozzo’s blank look, he reminded, “the emergency room? To get re-checked?”

 

DiNozzo frowned and looked set to refuse. “I’m afraid that wasn’t a suggestion. Gibbs may not be aware of what your partner did, but I _am_ and I want you checked. It’ll go better for both of us if what happened does come up, because Gibbs certainly was pissed about her father grabbing you the way he did. Tell him what you want about the rest of it,” Vance said, confident now that DiNozzo would do no such thing.

 

Tony was longing for his soft bed and cool sheets, but instead resigned himself to Vance’s company and a night in the ER for the second time in the last few days. He nodded in agreement and followed the director down to the garage, concealing his unease at this whole development.


	4. Chapter 4

After the tension of the last few days, Gibbs took solace in the mundane task of cleaning up the basement and getting it ready for the next project. It gave him time to think; to sort out his conflicted feelings about Ziva. Ziva told him she had been betrayed by everyone around her. She still clung to the belief that Tony had killed Michael out of jealousy rather than accept the truth around Rivkin’s instability and her father’s role in the whole mess. She needed time to come to grips with who betrayed who.

 

He knew he was making excuses for her just as Tony had been. They were trying to find reasons to make it possible to trust her again, to hope she was another victim in this web of deceit and betrayal. The impossible choice she’d asked him to make between her and Tony hadn’t helped her case. Although he’d admitted to Ducky the real reason behind Ziva staying in Israel, Tony still didn’t know half of what she’d done for her father, and Mossad, going all the way back to Ari. He probably didn’t need to know any of that now; it would only cause him more pain on top of the anxiety and guilt he carried over her absence. Then again, it was Tony; a man whose investigative instincts at times rivaled, or even exceeded his own. Maybe he did know after all. None of it mattered now that she was gone and wouldn’t be back.

 

Any chance of her return to the team all but disappeared with that revelation from Vance.

 

 _Two birds, one bullet_.

 

He’d thought he was protecting the woman who’d saved his life by accepting the blame for Ari’s death, only to find she’d killed him on her father’s orders and Vance had known the whole time. He’d gone to Vance to ask for Ziva back only to be told she’d deceived them all. After Kate, she’d won their trust and acceptance against long odds. Eventually, after nearly four years in the absence of her father’s influence, she had become one of them for a time, maybe even convinced herself of it.

 

Then Rivkin and Mossad had come into the picture; her father’s influence again, though none of them knew it then. It was only thanks to Tony that they knew it now, and ironically it was Tony who first suspected something wasn’t right with her. That fateful night he’d gone to her apartment not out of jealousy as Ziva had accused, but to protect his partner. He’d gone hoping to understand; for her to tell him something; anything to cast off the shadow of doubt and convince him of her innocence. He’d gone alone and instead of Ziva, he found someone who shouldn’t even have been there…Rivkin.

 

They didn’t really have the luxury of hope any longer; the evidence Abby found while they were in Israel was pretty damning. The fact that Ziva’s apartment was firebombed, that she’d called Hadar in an attempt to have Rivkin extracted before he could be apprehended, information recovered from the laptop destroyed in the fire; all of it together added up to a grim picture. Add to that her clipped, one word answers to his gentle questions after her apartment was destroyed and complete unwillingness to offer any details that might lift the shroud of suspicion. Setting aside her grief over Michael and anger at Tony, she was still hiding something from them.

 

Whatever she was hiding, when the chips were down Ziva had ultimately been unable to serve two masters and chosen where her loyalties lay. And it wasn’t with him, or any of them. Maybe it never had been.

 

Vance had taken great satisfaction in pointing out how wrong he’d been; that the shared secret between him and Ziva was anything but secret.

 

 _Two birds, one bullet_ …the infuriating phrases echoed in his head.

 

 _Eli played you_.

 

It wasn’t just Eli. Vance had played him too and he wasn’t sure which made him angrier. There was no room to feel anger at Ziva; only regret. In the end, it was Ziva’s disloyalty toward him…toward all of them really, that actually cut more deeply than he’d thought possible. It seemed the bond he’d thought they shared had been nothing more than a means to an end for Mossad and Eli David.


	5. Chapter 5

~Three Weeks Later~

 

Ducky snapped off the light for the x-ray illuminator and pressed his lips together in displeasure. It seemed he had a mystery to get to the bottom of, sooner rather than later. Someone had some explaining to do; he thought as he walked over to the phone and dialed a number.

 

“Jethro, I have some free time and I’d like to check Anthony’s arm. Will you send him down, please?” Ducky sighed at the protest he received. “Yes, I’m sure he’s fine. However, since I am the one with the MD behind his name, I’d like to ascertain that for myself,” he groused. “Furthermore, as lead agent, if you’d like an updated assessment of when your senior field agent might resume field duties, _send him down_ ,” he insisted sharply, then disconnected the call.

 

Up in the bullpen, Gibbs blinked in surprise upon hearing the dial tone in his ear. Replacing the receiver with a frown, he called over to Tony, who was fully absorbed in his review of cold cases. “DiNozzo; go see Ducky.”

 

“Huh?” Tony looked up from his work, confusion on his face. “Why? I’m fine, Boss.”

 

“Go; he’s not going to take no for an answer,” Gibbs said, jerking his head toward the elevator. “He’s already cranky at me for some damn reason; no sense in him being irritable with both of us.”

 

“Sure, Boss,” Tony answered agreeably and headed to Autopsy.

 ~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 “Hey Ducky,” Tony called out as he entered Autopsy. It looked like Palmer and McGee hadn’t returned from lunch, so at least they’d have privacy while Ducky did his poking and prodding.

 

Ducky looked up as Anthony entered and again noted the shadow of faded bruises on his neck; the marks taking on a greater significance now in light of what he’d just seen on the x-rays.

 

“Anthony, you should still be wearing that sling,’ he greeted, with no small amount of disapproval. “We’ll discuss that further but first, I believe you can assist me with solving a little mystery.”

 

Tony held up his still-casted forearm. “I thought you wanted to check my arm,” he said, baffled.

 

“I intend to, but first I’d like you to provide some insight on a package I received today. From University Hospital,” Ducky added pointedly, and watched as Tony paled a bit.

 

“What package?” he prompted, delaying the inevitable. He was fully aware of where this conversation was going now but pretended ignorance all the same. Ducky shot him a look that said he wasn’t fooled in the least.

 

“It contained an ER report of examination and copy of x-rays; time stamped in the wee hours of the morning immediately following your return from Israel,” Ducky clarified. “Information which indicates you returned from a very short trip with injuries you did not have when you left. Would you care to explain this?”

 

“No, thank you.”

 

The exaggerated politeness of his reply conflicted with the look on the younger man’s face. Ducky was well-acquainted with the mulish expression his friend now wore.

 

“Anthony, I’ll have none of your stubbornness, now. The ER documented the injuries you sustained at Michael Rivkin’s hands before you left and forwarded these later findings because they assumed it was part of that investigation. Otherwise I’d have known nothing about these new injuries.” 

 

Tony just looked down, refusing to meet his eyes.  
  
Ducky’s frustration mounted. “Jethro explained these markings on your neck,” he said, indicating the faded yellow-green bruises. “He said nothing about these additional injuries…ones which were conspicuously absent from any official report and which I should have been told about.”

 

Tony remained silent. Ducky took a calming breath and spoke again, softly.

 

“My dear boy, clearly you sustained new injuries while in Israel. What happened and why are you hiding it? Does Gibbs even know about the rest of it?”

 

“No! Ducky, please. Let it go,” Tony pleaded.

 

“Not until I have a better understanding as to what’s going on here,” Ducky insisted. “If you were so determined to keep this from everyone, why would you even go to the ER? It does seem out of character.”

 

Tony grimaced. “Vance made me go. He took me there himself to make sure I wasn’t seriously hurt. I got the impression he was basically covering his ass in case I decided to file a complaint,” Tony muttered.

 

Ducky was astounded. “Vance knows about this…and did nothing?” Things were becoming clearer indeed. Obviously something bad enough had happened in Israel that the Director feared a formal complaint; but it wasn’t in any report and why didn’t _Gibbs_ know?

 

“The Director compelled you to hide this?” he asked; his distaste for Vance’s obvious self-serving politicking coming through loud and clear. He was protecting his alliance with Mossad and Eli David at Tony’s expense. _Again_.

 

“Not exactly; let’s just say we both have our reasons. Drop it, Ducky. None of it matters anymore,” Tony said resignedly. Ziva wasn’t coming back, so why make a production out of what happened?

 

“We’ll see,” Ducky said, noncommittally. “Now I am going to take new x-rays and you will allow me to examine _all_ of your injuries.”

 

“There’s no need Ducky, I’m healing just fine.”

 

“I’ll be the judge of that and it wasn’t a request, Anthony. Now…on the table with you.”

 

Gibbs was right, Ducky was in a no-nonsense mood and given the circumstances, it was probably best to cooperate for the time being.

 

X-rays taken and exam completed, Tony re-dressed as Ducky compared his new x-rays to the previous two sets from the emergency room visits. Tony pulled his shirt back on and walked over to the light box to peer over Ducky’s shoulder.

 

Disapproval was plain in Ducky’s voice as he spoke. “As you are well aware, in addition to the rather extensive and colorful bruising on your back, chest, and legs, whatever _mishap_ you are determined to hide has resulted in three additional fractures. The sternum bone is notoriously slow to heal, so you are quite fortunate that yours is intact, although I imagine the deep bruising there is quite painful. You also have hairline fractures in two ribs in your back, which seem to be healing well.” Ducky turned from the x-rays to point at Tony’s shoulder. “The new fracture in your collarbone is not healing properly. Neither is your arm, for that matter. You _will_ use the sling until the cast comes off, or I say otherwise.”

 

“Ducky…” Tony began.

 

“Stop right there,” Ducky said firmly. He was in no way above a little blackmail to ensure the young man started taking better care of himself. Something he obviously had _not_ been doing, if the absent sling, pale face, and fine lines of pain around his eyes and mouth were any indication.

 

“If you want me to drop this matter, then I shall ask something in return,” he declared. “Unlike Director Vance, who likely has nefarious reasons for keeping this secret, my sole concern is your welfare.”

 

Tony raised an eyebrow in inquiry.

 

“You will allow me to monitor your progress toward healing without argument and you will follow my instructions to the letter. Is that clear?” 

 

Tony nodded in relief and acceptance, grateful Ducky wasn’t going to push further for an explanation of his new injuries.

 

“Clear, Ducky. Is that all? I’d like to get back upstairs before Gibbs decides to take exception to how long I’ve been gone.”

 

With a final round of instructions and admonitions about following medical advice, Tony was released to return to work. He rushed up the stairs and toward the bullpen, only slowing just before he reached the corner that was visible from Gibbs’ workstation. He nonchalantly strode over to his desk and sat; opening the desk drawer and retrieving the discarded sling. He didn’t put it past Ducky to come up and make sure he’d put it back on.

 

Sling back in place, he pulled the abandoned cold case file toward him and went back to where he left off. He could feel Gibbs’ eyes on him as he worked and waited for the inevitable.

 

“DiNozzo.”

 

“Hmm?” he looked up. “Yeah, boss?”

 

Gibbs rolled his eyes at Tony’s evasive antics. He knew damn well he was expected to report back the results of Ducky’s exam. “What did Ducky say?”

 

As far as Gibbs knew, he was just down there to get his arm checked, so he wouldn’t be lying if that’s all he disclosed about Ducky’s exam. Tony scowled. “The arm isn’t healing as fast as expected. Ducky says I need to wear the sling until the cast comes off or he says so,” Tony answered with an edge of petulance.

 

Gibbs knew Tony would chafe at this restriction and delay in getting back in the field. Given Ducky’s angry reaction to the livid bruises on the younger man’s throat and being told about the mistreatment at Eli David’s hands, he figured Tony’s annoyance over being kept on desk duty was more preferable to risking Ducky’s wrath. “You’ll do what Ducky says, DiNozzo,” he ordered.  

 

Gibbs smiled in amusement as Tony’s expression took on a distinct pout. His mirth didn’t escape the younger man’s notice.

 

“Laughing at the wounded, Boss? Nice,” Tony grinned, his own good humor restored at seeing a rare Gibbs smile. “Good to know I’m not the only one in this room afraid of Ducky,” he said with a knowing wink.

 

“Shut up and go back to your cold case, DiNozzo,” Gibbs shot back, still smiling.  He was pretty damn pleased to see signs of Tony returning to normal as they began to come to grips with Ziva’s absence and their feelings of guilt surrounding it.


	6. Chapter 6

~Three months later~

 

Gibbs locked his badge and weapon in the desk; he wouldn’t need it where he was going. He, Tony, and McGee would be leaving for Somalia in the morning. Their rather unsanctioned fact-finding mission on the ground had finally received the green light from Vance. They would be backed up by SEAL Team Five from across the border in Kenya and an aircraft carrier group in international waters off the coast of Somalia.

 

Vance had been curiously resistant to proactively investigating Saleem Ulman’s terrorist cell. The same terrorist cell Rivkin was investigating in LA. Both Mossad’s and their own intelligence indicated the group had more than a passing interest in NCIS as a result of Rivkin’s missteps. One would think the director of NCIS would want to know more about _why_. For his team though, that point was secondary to the fact that Ziva David was dead. Most likely she and her Mossad team had died when the Damocles sank, all because they were pursuing Ulman.

 

Tony had said they had an obligation to bring him down and Gibbs didn’t disagree, although he was certain there was more than that to Tony’s motivations. He’d kept it well hidden, but Gibbs suspected Tony was driven by his penchant for guilt and shouldering blame that wasn’t his alone. He’d made a compelling argument though, and with Gibbs’s support, they’d finally swung Vance around to their side.

 

He rose, looking around the darkened bullpen, glad to see Tony and McGee had already gone home. He would do the same after a quick stop to see Ducky. He walked briskly toward the stairs and headed to autopsy.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Ducky was just finishing up some paperwork when Gibbs walked in. “Jethro,” he greeted quietly, pulling a bottle of scotch and two glasses from his bottom desk drawer. “Have a seat,” he said as he poured a generous amount of amber liquid in each glass.

 

“Scotch, Ducky? What’s this about?” Gibbs asked, amused.

 

“A rather more serious conversation than you were expecting, Jethro.”

 

Gibbs took in the obvious worry on his oldest friend’s features and frowned. “Ducky, is this about the mission? Every reasonable precaution has been taken,” he said.

 

“Of course I’m worried for all of you, but that is not why I asked you here. I’m hesitant to add to your concerns about how this mission will go, but there are some things you need to know. I can no longer remain silent on this matter,” Ducky said in a grave tone.

 

“Ducky, what the hell is this? What _things_ do I need to know?”

 

“It’s about Anthony.”

 

Gibbs stiffened in his chair and took a larger gulp from the glass than he intended. “What about Tony?” he asked around the burn of scotch in his throat.

 

“As events have played out this summer, some things have puzzled me,” he began, seemingly changing the subject. “I hate an unsolved puzzle as much as you and Anthony. In this situation, I seem to have some pieces that _you_ are missing.”

 

Gibbs closed his eyes in frustration and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ducky, I don’t have time for guessing games. _What about Tony_ ,” he repeated, “And is whatever you have to tell me relevant to this mission?”

 

“It is. You realize he harbors quite a bit of guilt about Ziva’s fate, don’t you? I suspect he blames himself for her death. Even though evidence established a clear case of self-defense, because he killed Rivkin, Anthony sees himself as the one who put the chain of events in motion that led to Ziva’s death on that ship.”

 

“First of all, _Ziva_ put that chain of events in motion herself, when she lied, covered for Rivkin, and withheld information from us. Second, Tony didn’t put her on that ship. Her _father_ did and _she_ let him, just as she let him and Mossad use her over and over to serve his interests and do his dirty work.”

 

“Have you told _him_ that?” Ducky asked. At Gibbs’ guilty look, he nodded. “I thought not. Some things _aren’t_ better left unsaid, you know.”

 

“All that has occurred to me,” Gibbs admitted. “What exactly is it that’s got _you_ worried about it now, Ducky?”

 

“I’m worried his guilt will impact his judgment; perhaps even drive him to be reckless.”

 

All of this had crossed Gibbs’ mind already, as he witnessed Tony slip briefly into despondency after they’d learned of Ziva’s death. He knew Tony hoped they would have a chance someday to clear the air about what happened and make amends. Now that chance was gone. Now Tony needed to do this because he was trying to pull himself out of the tailspin he was falling into and Gibbs needed to _let_ him. It was becoming painful to watch this new subdued Tony going through the motions with a defeated slump to his shoulders, driven to do this mission…possibly for all the wrong reasons. He needed the ‘Tony’ he knew back so he supported giving him a chance at closure.

 

Still, as much as news of Ziva’s death had shocked them all, he knew Tony wouldn’t do anything to endanger McGee. He’d put himself in the line of fire if it meant preventing anything happening to his probie. Something about the level of Ducky’s concern wasn’t adding up.

 

“Ducky, I know or at least suspected everything you’ve brought up. Tell me what it is you think I _don’t_ know.”

 

Ducky sighed. “Do you recall Anthony was on desk duty longer than expected because his arm was slow to heal?” Gibbs nodded and made an impatient ‘go on’ gesture. ‘It wasn’t just his arm that needed time to heal.  Are you aware Tony was seen in the emergency room within hours of your return from Tel Aviv?”

 

“What?” Gibbs voice rose as his temper flared. “Why am I just now hearing this and how long have _you_ known?”

 

“I only found out weeks later when a copy of the ER examination report and x-rays were forwarded to me. The hospital mistakenly assumed it was related to the Rivkin incident and needed for the investigation. Anthony refused to discuss how the new injuries happened and didn’t want anyone to know about it. I agreed on the condition that he would allow me to monitor his healing and follow my instructions.” Ducky paused, waiting out Gibbs' anger.

 

“You and Tony both have some explaining to do, Ducky.”

 

“We aren’t the only ones, Jethro. Director Vance is the one who took him to the ER. More importantly, Anthony was injured in _Israel_ and Vance _knew_ about it,” Ducky said pointedly. “Now what could have happened that they would _both_ try to hide it? Who would they be protecting, hmm?”

 

Gibbs’ jaw clenched and he ignored the question for now. “What were his injuries Ducky?”

 

Ducky recited the list in a clinical voice; remaining detached was the only way to keep his _own_ temper in check. “Extensive bruising on his legs, back, and chest. Whatever happened to cause the bruise on his chest, it nearly broke his sternum. Hairline rib fractures in his back. Incomplete fracture of the collarbone near the shoulder joint.”

 

“I am going to _kick his ass_ for not telling me about this,” Gibbs gritted out.

 

“Jethro…the absolute last thing he needs now, of all times, is to think you are angry with him,” Ducky admonished.

 

Gibbs closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I know, Duck.” He needed Tony focused and in the present during this mission. Dealing with this would have to wait until they got back.

 

“Anthony admitted Director Vance was concerned enough about whatever happened to him that he would take some formal action and was ‘covering his ass’, to use Anthony’s more colorful phrasing. I got the impression he was in part worried about reprisal and that played a part in the secrecy.”

 

Gibbs nodded in agreement. “I have a damn good idea why Vance’s actions in all of this are suspicious.” Vance had obviously been worried Gibbs would make good on his threat to expose this entire mess to their superiors, not just the bare bones details the chain of command had been given so far.

 

“After Vance allowed Eli to interrogate and manhandle Tony, I told him if anything else happened to Tony while we were there, I’d skip SecNav and go straight to SecDef and the State Department,” Gibbs explained.

 

Ducky started at that. “Anthony was actually _interrogated_?”

 

Gibbs nodded grimly. “Vance’s idea of _diplomacy_.”

 

Ducky’s features crinkled in disgust at their director’s actions. “You omitted that little detail when you told me the reason for the new bruises on Anthony’s throat,” he replied disapprovingly. “So did Vance coerce Anthony’s silence about whatever else happened?”

 

“He may have and if he did, I’d sure as hell like to find out what he’s up to.”

 

“I also had a definite feeling Anthony was more specifically worried about _you_ finding out. He reacted quite strongly when I asked if you knew. Since he is unaware of your warning to the director, there’s only one other reason I can think for that.”

 

Gibbs’ heart sank at what Ducky was suggesting. He immediately flashed back to that day on the hot tarmac when they’d arrived in Tel Aviv with Rivkin’s body. Tony was almost immediately separated from the rest of them; he didn’t like it a damn bit and made sure Vance knew it.

 

 _“_ _I am going to see him again, right, Leon?”_

 

 _“_ _Officer Hadar will not harm him,” Ziva had chimed in._ _“_ _Only two people have the authority to do that.”_

 

 _“_ _Your father is one. Second?” Vance asked her._

 

 _Her dark eyes narrowed and shone with suppressed anger as she’d answered in a cold voice._ _“_ _Me._ _”_

 

“Yeah, Ducky,” Gibbs agreed. He didn’t like it, but had to accept that other than the elder David, there was only one other person who could have been responsible for injuring Tony. And if it _was_ her, the idiot probably _let_ her hurt him, thinking he owed her at least that much. “I think we’re on the same page there…and you believe all this could compromise his judgment somehow?”

 

“It’s a possibility I thought you should be aware of, and Vance is an unknown in this situation.”

 

Gibbs shook his head. “I think Tony’s stronger than either of us gives him credit for,” he said confidently.

 

“I hope you’re right, Jethro.”

  
  
“Either way Ducky, I know he needs to do this. Misplaced guilt aside, whatever she may have done, she was his partner. He still feels a responsibility to her and this will give him the closure he needs to move on.”

 

Ducky nodded in understanding. “And the matter of Director Vance?” he queried as Gibbs rose to leave.

 

The corner of Gibbs mouth lifted in a smirk. “Oh, I have an idea about that. Thanks for the drink, Ducky.”

 

As soon as Gibbs got to the privacy of his car, he made a short phone call.

 

He waited for the ringing phone to register above the likely volume of music in the lab at this late hour. He smiled as he was greeted enthusiastically.

 

“Abby, there’s something important I’d like you to do while we’re gone.”


	7. Chapter 7

~Somalia~

 

Dammit, this shouldn’t have happened. Gibbs sat hidden on a rise a short distance away from the abandoned village, unable to do anything but watch helplessly through his binoculars as Tony and McGee were captured. Intel and their on the ground findings indicated Saleem and his men recently abandoned this location and moved to a larger, more secluded camp in the hills a couple miles away. There was no way anyone should have known they were there following Saleem’s trail, yet somehow, Saleem’s men knew exactly where to find them and had set a trap. _Someone_ was going to answer for this screw up. It was only by chance he hadn’t been captured too. Tony had dropped him off earlier to reconnoiter from high ground before he and McGee had continued downhill into the village, leaving him too far away to help when Saleem’s men seemingly materialized out of nowhere.

 

A wave of impotent rage swept over him as he watched Tony and McGee being attacked and overcome by Saleem’s men. His heart pounded when he saw Tony take a blow to the head and fall to the dusty ground next to the jeep. Tony lay unmoving while McGee shouted incoherently and tried to get to his partner. Gibbs held his breath as McGee was subdued, bound, and forced into the jeep. He heaved a sigh of relief as two of the men similarly bound Tony, then lifted and shoved him in the jeep next to McGee. They wouldn’t have bothered to bind him if Tony were dead. He continued to watch helplessly as his agents were driven away, presumably to the terrorist’s nearby camp.

 

He remained hidden until dusk, making sure all of Saleem’s men had gone. Certain he was alone; he radioed the SEAL team on standby just across the border and alerted them to the situation and his GPS position and heading. Once that was done, he hefted his gear, slung the sniper rifle over his shoulder, and began the hike toward Saleem’s camp under the cover of darkness. Their covert ‘boots on the ground’ assignment to verify Saleem Ulman’s presence here had just turned into a rescue mission. He’d get them both back home, or die trying.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

~Washington DC~

 

Vance stared uneasily at the blinking light on his phone. What possible reason could Eli have to call him now, of all times? With Gibbs, DiNozzo, and McGee on the ground in Somalia tracking down Saleem Ulman and his terrorist training camp, the timing was surely no coincidence. He had to find out if Eli knew about his people being there and if he intended to interfere.

 

He sighed and picked up the receiver. “Shalom, Eli. How are you, my friend?”

 

“Shalom, Leon. I’m afraid this is not a social call,” he replied.

 

“Oh? What’s wrong?” he asked, pretending ignorance as to the likely reason for Eli’s call.  

 

“Let us skip the pretenses, Leon. My sources tell me you have agents in Somalia, pursuing Saleem Ulman. What is NCIS’ interest in this matter? You have no jurisdiction there,” he stated.

 

“We _do_ have operations in Africa you know,” Vance countered sharply, “and if NCIS is working in Somalia, I’m not sure how that would be Mossad’s concern.”

 

“It concerns me, because Mossad already has operatives in the area. You knew when you gave me the information your Miss Scuito recovered from Ibn Tabil’s laptop, that we would continue to investigate his connection to Saleem Ulman and the extent of his network in Somalia. Your agents’ presence is interfering with our mission,” Eli replied in an angry tone.

 

“Ah, so it’s a case of us stepping on each other’s toes again, is it?” Vance asked. “My people are already on the ground. I can’t recall them until they check in…and I’d need you to give me a compelling reason to do that.”

 

“ _Why_ are they there?” Eli asked again. He was furious that NCIS was interfering with his plans _again_ , even if it was inadvertently.  His need to eliminate Ulman, his agreement with Ziva, and plan to pull her back into the fold and solidify her loyalty…all of that was being disrupted. NCIS’ activity might even be the reason Ziva was now out of contact.

 

“I assume your operatives are there for the same reason we are; to confirm Ulman’s camp is there, and active,” Vance answered truthfully. “Once we do that, the US will wipe him and his camp off the face of the earth. You had to know when I gave you the copy of that information that we’d also follow up. You should have expected the US to be there, if not NCIS then another agency; even the CIA has more than a passing interest here.”

 

Eli considered that, and how this situation could benefit him. “At this point, we should work together to avoid any misunderstandings. In fact, I think it’s imperative we share information.”

 

“Explain, Eli.”

 

“I prefer my officers not be in the area during a strike by US forces, Leon,” he said drily.

 

“They’re in the camp? Vance asked incredulously.

 

“Only one,” Eli asserted. “The presence of NCIS agents may jeopardize my officer’s position and safety if recognized.”

 

“Why would they recognize a Mossad officer in Africa?”

 

“The officer in question is Ziva.”

 

Vance stared in disbelief. “What?” It took a lot to shell shock him but this revelation managed it.

 

“Ziva and her partner didn’t truly die when the Damocles went down. Their ‘deaths’ onboard the ship is part of her cover. She is the one who has infiltrated Saleem’s cell.”

 

“Alone? What the hell was her partner thinking, allowing her to go in there alone…for what purpose? And why in God’s name would you send your only living child on such a mission?”

 

“Mossad’s interests in this matter are not your concern, Leon.”

 

“Mossad’s interests, or yours, Eli?”

 

“Ziva agreed to complete Michael’s mission to find Saleem and verify the reach of his network. That is all you need to know,” Eli allowed.

 

“So you sank an entire ship and killed its crew to establish her cover, then allowed us to believe she was dead?”

 

“We had an agreement Leon. Ziva would not return to NCIS. Why is this news so troubling to you?”

 

“It’s troubling because it’s my best team that is on the ground in Somalia! Intelligence tells us Saleem plans to move against NCIS after Rivkin’s actions in LA exposed our investigation to him. Ultimately, it was DiNozzo and Scuito who tracked Saleem’s movements via his supply chain. It was Gibbs and his team that convinced me they needed to be the ones to go. While they didn’t necessarily say so, there’s no question part of the reason they are there is to get justice for your daughter’s death!”

 

 _DiNozzo again_ , Eli thought. Poking his nose where it didn’t belong…Gibbs too for that matter. “Pull them out,” Eli demanded.

 

“My agents have adequate backup; she doesn’t apparently. Pull Ziva.”

 

“That’s a problem…we have lost contact with her. After her partner was injured in a gun battle getting off the ship, she went on alone to infiltrate the camp,” Eli admitted. “She was in contact until just recently.”

 

Vance knew Eli could be cold and calculating. So could his daughter for that matter. Still, his callousness and willingness to sacrifice Ziva to this mission was appalling. “Have you all lost your minds? She shouldn’t have gone in!”

 

Eli didn’t want to admit how he practically blackmailed Ziva into this mission. He’d told her she would be released from Mossad and allowed to leave Israel if she completed Michael’s original mission to locate and shut down Ulman’s terror cell. He had no intention of honoring his part of the agreement and hopefully Ziva had not become a liability. He wanted her back; wanted to know what Ulman knew. The current situation wasn’t ideal. Now that she’d broken protocol and stopped maintaining contact he suspected she was compromised...perhaps had even turned on him.

 

Gibbs’ presence further complicated matters, but it could be turned to his advantage. Leon’s people could pull Ziva out, and destroy the camp. Israel would not incur the wrath of the international community. Ziva would return and having failed in her mission he would have a way out of his agreement with her, not that he intended to keep it had she been successful.

 

“She broke protocol by going on alone but her actions aren’t unprecedented for a Mossad operative,” Eli lied smoothly. “Even so, she has managed to keep in periodic contact with other local operatives until the last few days. I surmise your agents’ presence is the reason. Judging from the activity we have seen around the camp, they have jeopardized her cover. I assume you have a plan to bring your people out?”

 

“I can’t discuss the specifics of that with you, Eli. It’s not solely an NCIS operation.”

 

That in itself was an interesting bit of information, Eli thought. “She has compiled invaluable evidence and intelligence on Ulman and his network during her time there,” he stated. He wasn’t entirely sure of that, but wanted Vance to think so; in order to convince him to use his team to bring Ziva out along with any intelligence she obtained. “It will benefit both our countries. Is it possible your team can assist her in smuggling the information out?”

 

“You don’t even have to ask, Eli. Once Gibbs realizes she is there, he’ll move heaven and earth to bring her out too in spite of everything,” Vance asserted. “His code won’t allow him to leave her behind. And if they’re successful it’s _you_ who will owe _me_ , my friend.”

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

~Same day, Somalia~

 

Ziva rubbed her neck absentmindedly, still missing her Star of David necklace. It had been many weeks ago now that she’d hesitantly given it to Malachi for safekeeping. Walking into a terrorist training camp posing as a female recruit was a calculated risk, but walking into Saleem’s camp with that necklace on would have been extremely foolish and arrogant.

 

It was providence she’d actively worked with Michael on assessing the information on Ibn Tabil’s laptop. The dead terrorist happened to be highly placed in Saleem Ulman’s cell and his laptop contained a wealth of information Ziva used to solidify her cover story. Posing as Tabil’s lover and a Hamas sympathizer recruited by him, she’d managed to infiltrate Saleem’s cell and gain a grudging level of respect, if not a semblance of trust.

 

She’d stealthily observed the camp for several days, noting routines and guard movements. She’d even managed to sneak in and out; concealing radios where they’d be accessible should she be successful in infiltrating the camp. If not, she‘d have to rely on Malachi to inform her father she’d failed.

 

When she’d first arrived, she stoically endured a vicious beating at the hands of Saleem’s overzealous guards before he was alerted to the new arrival’s presence. He’d put a stop to the beating after she’d been rendered unconscious by a brutal blow to her cheek bone.  She’d awoken hours later, tied to a chair alone in a room with Saleem himself.  He studied her intently for a few moments, while she stared at the floor in silence. Clearly expecting resistance and showing a readiness to inflict more abuse, he grabbed a handful of her hair in a painful grip and wrenched her head back sharply. She reflexively gasped in pain as he demanded “Tell me everything you know about NCIS.”

 

He was taken aback when she looked up and him and smiled through the blood and hideous bruises on her face then spoke calmly in Arabic, “There is no need to torture me for that which I would tell you willingly. I am sent by Ibn, here to serve your cause. I ask only for the chance to prove my worth and avenge his death. I think you will find that I am capable and useful to you, and if not…do what you will.”

 

She hadn’t been subjected to any further beatings but had been left tied for days with no food and water. Saleem returned periodically to question her, and presumably checking each element of her story as she answered his queries. She told him everything about Michael’s mission for Mossad, and about the NCIS OSP and headquarters in DC. She knew Ibn Tabil had already relayed much of this information, and so it would support her story nicely. She provided a wealth of verifiable information only Tabil would have known; all of it supporting a set of lies about herself woven in that Saleem would be unable to find anything to contradict. 

 

She only omitted the identities of her former team and Michael’s role in Ibn’s death, instead blaming that on NCIS. She felt no loyalty toward the OSP agents, but was still conflicted about her former team.  She had no ill will toward Gibbs or McGee; Tony was the only one who could have poisoned them against her after killing Michael. Still, as much as she wanted to do so, she was hesitant to make a target out of Tony when Gibbs or McGee might become collateral damage. Seeing Tony get his comeuppance would have to wait.

 

Ultimately she’d convinced Saleem of her cover story and had been given a place in the cell. Treated with mistrust at first, after several weeks working with them successfully, they’d begun to accept her. As weeks passed, Saleem’s scrutiny had turned to lingering, admiring glances thrown her way periodically and she took advantage of that weakness in the man’s character. As a Mossad officer, she’d certainly used her body and allowed it to be used to advance their goals. Her situation here was precarious and if sex kept her on good terms with Saleem, well…she’d slept with people for far worse reasons.

 

Now her circumstances had changed. With unidentified NCIS agents in the area, Saleem was angry and preparing to relocate the camp. Worse, he was suspicious of her once more. Not only had she’d fallen out of favor and been roughly treated, she was imprisoned again; her every move being watched. It infuriated her. She had been so close to carrying out her planned escape with all the information she’d gathered. She imagined herself returning to Israel triumphant, and compelling her father to keep his end of the bargain; to release her from Mossad and allow her to return to Washington.

 

She felt certain once there she could erode Tony’s influence over Gibbs and persuade the team leader to accept her on the MCRT again. If only she could get back to the US and out from under her increasingly erratic father’s toxic influence and control. She would bide her time and wait for a chance to convince Saleem she had nothing to do with this development. Perhaps she could even offer to help him find out who the agents were, and why they were here. She owed them nothing and if helping Saleem take his revenge on NCIS helped earn her freedom of movement back, it would be worthwhile.


	8. Chapter 8

Gibbs took a sip from his dwindling supply of water, and replaced the cap carefully. He'd been surveilling Saleem's camp for three days, arriving a few hours after Tony and McGee had been captured. Drawing on stores of patience he hadn't used since his days as a Marine sniper, he spent his time moving carefully well outside the camp's perimeter, finding spots of brush covered high ground from which he could better observe the buildings and how they were being used. He also hoped to pinpoint where his agents were being held.

 

He easily avoided the poorly trained men acting as 'guards' while making note of their movements and routines. The assault team would have to make their move soon; the terrorists appeared to be preparing to relocate. Timing was everything now. He was holding off calling in the assault team until he confirmed Tony and McGee were both here. He'd seen McGee being moved between the buildings. There had been no sign of Tony at all and he was tormented by the possibility that his SFA and friend may have already been killed.

 

Gibbs caught unusual movement in the camp below him and snatched up the sniper rifle, using the scope to give him a closer look. McGee was being moved again. He was glad to see his junior agent in not much worse condition than he'd been in after his capture, all things considered. McGee and the men moving him disappeared into a large building on the edge of the camp nearest Gibbs. Several other prisoners had been moved to this building as he kept watch, including one he thought might be female. After a few minutes, he could see movement inside from a large window set rather high in the outer wall. Yes, that's where they left McGee; he was alone for now.

 

McGee had been knocked around a little, but was clearly moving under his own power. That was a good sign. The assault team was on standby and once alerted rescue could be nearby in about an hour. They were just awaiting Gibbs’ signal to move in and he was facing the decision that he might have to call them in without knowing Tony's whereabouts. As he watched, another group of men removed lengths of camouflage netting from what appeared to be supply crates stacked out of place in the middle of the camp. He frowned as one of Saleem's men opened a padlocked crate, dragged out a limp, hooded figure and dropped him in the dust. Dammit, he recognized those clothes...it had to be Tony.

 

Gibbs’ relief on sighting Tony for the first time since reaching the camp was tempered with worry that he'd obviously been subjected to hotbox torture. Whether it was a metal box designed for such an inhuman purpose, or a wooden crate, the result was the same. This type of confinement was a tool used for punishment, to break down resistance to questioning, or help coerce someone into cooperating with their torturers.  Depending on how long he'd been locked in there, Tony could be suffering anything from mild dehydration all the way to heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

 

As he watched, the hood was removed and a bucket of muddy water was thrown on the still body. His concern dropped a notch as Tony immediately rolled to one side, coughing. Alive then, he thought in relief. Tony was forced to his feet and shoved forward. He stumbled along blindly; partially supported by his captors and blinking from his sudden exposure to the brightness of the sun. He was led to the same building where McGee had been taken.

 

A few moments later, Gibbs could see through the window that Tony was taken into the same room with McGee. He was shoved into a chair and secured there with zip ties, presumably waiting questioning. Bingo. With both his men together in the same location, it was time to call in and coordinate rescue. There was only so much one man with a sniper rifle could do and he felt a sense of helplessness build as he called for the assault team to move in. With the helicopters that would extract them at best an hour away, he only hoped they would arrive before things went pear-shaped for his men.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Gibbs ignored the stifling heat in the hangar and watched closely as each member of his team was examined to ensure they were fit enough for the long flight back to the states. After a brief, intense battle the SEAL team took control of Saleem’s camp. The SEAL’s stealthy, heavily armed helicopters attacked; firing missiles at weapons stores that had been placed out in the open as the cell members prepared for relocating the camp. The resulting explosions provided the distraction that allowed him to board one of the incoming choppers and get down to his people just in time.

 

After shooting his way inside, he allowed himself a moment of relief and joy at seeing his people had freed themselves already, and were outside their cell. All mobile, Tony and McGee were making their way gingerly down the corridor, Ziva supported between them. They’d all been bundled into one of the choppers and flown across the border to the Nairobi airport, where a Navy cargo plane waited to take them back to DC. The helicopters would return to the aircraft carrier off the coast of Somalia anytime now.

 

It seemed they were safe but his gut was churning and he didn’t know why. McGee was sore and sunburned but holding his own. Ziva, underneath the dirt and grime, had apparently superficial injuries. Tony seemed to be suffering the effects of dehydration quite a bit more than Ziva or McGee; probably a result of being in that damn hotbox. Tony was being evasive about how long he’d been in the box and McGee didn’t know since they’d been separated immediately upon arriving at the camp. He trusted Ducky would get it out of Tony once they got back.

 

So why did he still feel so unsettled? He had his people back. A _ll_ of them; and wasn’t that a miracle? He didn’t get a chance to go any further with that train of thought, as the SEAL officer who’d led the rescue team gestured at him from a short distance across the hangar. He rose stiffly from his chair next to Tony’s gurney and pointed at his SFA. “Don’t even _think_ about pulling that IV before it’s done, DiNozzo.” 

 

“Yes, Boss.”

 

Satisfied Tony would obey, he turned reluctantly and walked over to the other man. “Something wrong, Commander Dalton?”

 

“Agent Gibbs, it seems our little excursion across the border has attracted some unwanted attention from Somali warlords in the area,” the officer informed him. “The Kenyan government has asked us to depart, and we’re going to comply. My team will head back to the carrier group first and then transit back home,” he explained. “Your transport back to the US is fueled and has engines running. As soon as you and your team are ready to travel, it will leave as well. The crew includes a medic, who’s been briefed and is prepared to provide basic treatment as needed.”

 

So, they weren’t quite out of the woods until they were in the air, Gibbs thought. “My thanks to you and your men for all you’ve done,” he said sincerely.

 

Commander Dalton nodded at the expression of gratitude. “No thanks needed; it’s what we do, Agent Gibbs. We take out the bad guys; pull the good guys out of the frying pan, and save the world.” With an irreverent grin that reminded him of Tony a bit, he added, “Even got to save the girl this time,” he grinned. “By the way, before the camp was leveled, my team recovered some intel. We found computers, cameras, recording equipment, and storage media. I assume NCIS will want a copy?”

 

“Most definitely,” Gibbs answered. “Aside from tracking the rest of his network, Saleem Ulman was planning to target NCIS for some reason. We’d like to know more about that and whether or not it ended with his death,” Gibbs explained.

 

Distracted by a voice in his headset, the commander paused before answering. “Time for us to take off, Gibbs. We’ll arrange for secure transmission of copies as soon as everything can be logged into evidence and reproduced,” the commander agreed before turning and leaving the hangar.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~ 

Tony sighed as the climbing plane finally leveled off; they’d reached flight altitude and were now reasonably safe. The adrenaline that flooded him during their rescue was fading, yet he still felt jittery and unsettled. Tony closed his eyes, and turned his head away from his companions. He couldn’t take looking at Ziva’s stony face across the aisle any longer. He listened to the drone of engines, hoping it would lull him into sleep. His jumbled thoughts and the residual effect of Saleem’s drugs racing around in his bloodstream wouldn’t let him rest yet. It was nothing short of a miracle that Ziva was returned to them, physically at least. What the hell had she been doing there, anyway? A Mossad operation gone wrong; it had to be. She’d supposedly been there for weeks if not months and something about that, and her behavior in that room wasn’t adding up. If only he could concentrate…sort out what his instincts were trying to tell him.

 

He thought back to the moment when Saleem abandoned his questioning suddenly, and then came back with a new prisoner; bound and hooded as he had been earlier. He was mildly surprised to realize it was a woman but then barely concealed his shock when Saleem removed the hood from the prisoner seated across from him, revealing Ziva. They’d thought she was dead; lost to them forever. After a brief, bright flare of hope in that room he came to realize that even though Ziva was very much alive, in a way she was _still_ lost to them. This Ziva was changed; damaged. At first she’d seemed defeated, uncaring about her own life and actually encouraging him to cooperate with Ulman…but the Ziva that came out of that room was cold and detached. Now she spoke to no one but Gibbs and the medic who’d given her a quick vitals check and cursory exam to ensure she needed no treatment before the long flight back to the states.

 

Once they were safe on the transport home, whatever mask she’d been employing while in the camp dropped. While she’d seemed defeated and weary from captivity in that room, now she wore a different mask. Whenever Gibbs’ attention was elsewhere, Ziva glared his way. Her dark eyes glittered with malice each time they fell on him. _Still angry I see_ , he thought. The passage of time had apparently done nothing to change her perspective about Michael’s death or cool her anger and resentment toward him. A shadow fell over his closed eyes and he sensed someone’s presence in front of him. He sighed inwardly and looked up to see Gibbs and the medic in front of him.

 

“You doing alright, DiNozzo?” Gibbs asked.

 

“Yeah, boss.”

 

“Of course you are,” he answered, knowing full well that’s what Tony would say no matter how bad he felt. After what he’d observed through that window, he wasn’t going to leave it at that. “The medic is going to take a look at you anyway,” he added, his tone carrying the ring of an order.

 

“Gibbs,” Tony sighed, knowing he wasn’t going to get out of being examined but trying anyway. Gibbs was giving him that _look_. “Fine,” he relented. Directing his attention to the medic, he insisted, “check Ziva again first, then McGee,” inclining his head toward the younger man dozing a few seats down.

 

Gibbs nodded his agreement, pleased that Tony’s priorities lay with Ziva and McGee’s welfare, but concerned about his SFA all the same. As the medic picked up his kit and headed to Ziva’s side of the plane, he studied his agent for a moment then leaned down and spoke quietly. “Just so you know, DiNozzo. I was watching when they pulled you out of that box…and I was watching as Saleem injected you with God knows what.”

 

Tony winced at the thought of Gibbs witnessing all of that, but was warmed by the concern in the older man’s voice, and the anger on his behalf.

 

“You will let the medic check you, and when we get back you’re going to let them draw blood to find out what the hell that bastard injected you with. Got it?”

 

“Gotcha, Boss.”

 

Gibbs nodded in satisfaction and patted Tony’s cheek, his warm palm lingering a brief moment. Tony was caught off guard by the affectionate gesture and blinked away the stinging in his eyes as Gibbs spoke again. “You did good out there, Tony. We need to talk about some things when we get back,” he paused, his eyes flicking toward Ziva and back again. “For now, try and get some rest.” 

 

Tony swallowed hard and nodded; his throat too tight to speak but hoping Gibbs could see the gratitude in his eyes. Gibbs’ slight smile as he turned toward Ziva and the medic told Tony that he’d seen it just fine.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Ziva was very nearly shaking with the force of her emotions and it took all of her control to keep them hidden from Gibbs and the others. Her feelings swung wildly between reawakened fury at Tony, gratitude at her freedom, and resentment about having NCIS to thank for it. She was pleased to see Gibbs again but still fuming and confused that he could allow Tony to convince him to leave her behind in Israel. Left behind, she'd had no choice but to serve at her father’s whim and return to Mossad, which landed her in that camp. Now her attempt to free herself from her father's control by completing Michael’s task had been thwarted by her 'rescue'.

 

Taking that view of things could be rather shortsighted, Ziva reconsidered. Nearly any situation could be turned to an advantage, if you were cunning enough; quick enough, or deceptive enough. So perhaps the deal with her father could now be rendered unnecessary by NCIS’ curiously-timed mission. Fortunately, they had no way to know about her actions in that camp and time would tell if she could make it work to her advantage.

 

Gibbs was taking her with them back to Washington and she immediately began plotting how she could stay there. She just had to ingratiate herself to Gibbs and Vance again; convince them to accept her back. Her actions around Michael portrayed her in a bad light, but she could explain that away and as far as any physical evidence, she was certain she had been thorough in covering her tracks.

 

Ziva felt another flash of resentment as she glanced across at Gibbs and the medic talking to Tony. As far as they all knew, she’d been a prisoner in that camp for months and it was Tony getting all the concern from Gibbs. She felt her ire calm as the medic headed toward her; apparently sent by Gibbs. She narrowed her eyes and scowled as Gibbs patted Tony’s cheek affectionately, and then composed her features quickly as he turned her way. Now she would play her ‘freed prisoner’ status for all it was worth.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Gibbs sat near the rear of the plane, intentionally seated in a position from which he could observe all of his people at once. According to the medic, McGee was the best off of the three. Dehydrated, hungry, and sore from the beatings he'd taken during their capture three days earlier, he was resting comfortably after drinking some water and eating a couple protein bars. Conditions on the plane didn't lend themselves to conducting a more thorough exam, that would have to wait until they returned, but the medic deemed Ziva stable. She was slightly underweight and suffering from the effects of mild dehydration as well as a variety of small cuts, bruises, and burns. He was grateful it wasn't worse than that at least outwardly, but something was off about it. There'd be time to worry about how she got there later.

 

Gibbs thought back to that moment when he'd watched in disbelief and amazement through his scope as Ziva was brought into that room with Tony and McGee. He'd immediately contacted the SEAL team on standby and advised them a third prisoner would be coming out with them, and then settled again, his eyes riveted on Ziva at first. Then he watched them all with rapt attention until the heart stopping moment of his people’s ill-fated attempt to free themselves. Thank god the SEALs had arrived and were in position nearby.

 

While Tony had somehow pulled Saleem’s attention away from McGee, the man was clearly a hair’s breadth from executing all three while he watched. It was time to end this, one way or the other. Tony’s actions had given him a perfect shot and he took it. The sound of his rifle shot echoing around the hills hadn’t even faded when the sound of approaching choppers reached his ears.

 

Now they were well out over the Atlantic more than halfway home and he’d had time to study his former liaison officer. Gibbs looked over at Ziva’s side of the plane again. She was in surprisingly good condition for someone who'd been prisoner for weeks, if not a couple months. Still, he wondered what horrors she may have endured as a prisoner in that place and he was more than a little curious how she came to be there. It was her father's work, no doubt. His lip reading skills were never as good as Abby’s and he was admittedly even rustier now, but Ziva’s side of the conversation with Tony in that cell concerned him. Tony’s back was to him, but he’d seen Ziva clearly and been able to get the gist from her responses. Her behavior was at odds with her appearance. Now, aside from the glares and stony looks sent Tony’s way when she thought Gibbs wasn’t looking, she was definitely hiding something. _Again_.


	9. Chapter 9

As with the first half of the flight, Gibbs watched as the medic continually monitored his team and did periodic vitals checks. He appreciated the man’s dedication; his people had been through a lot. All seemed as well as could be expected, at first anyway. After a few hours there was no change with McGee and Ziva, but Tony, on the other hand, seemed to be struggling. He was coughing frequently and in spite of that, having trouble staying awake. Gibbs tensed up as the medic left Tony's side and headed his way.

 

“Agent Gibbs, I’m getting pretty concerned about your man,” he began.

 

“What’s wrong with him?”

 

“I understand he was forcibly injected with a dose of some sort of truth serum cocktail?” he questioned.

 

At Gibbs’ nod, he continued. “I can’t be sure without tests, but he’s presenting some of the symptoms of an overdose of Sodium Pentothal, also known as thiopental. I’m just guessing here…it’s possible the injection also contained a stimulant to counteract the sedative effects of the thiopental. That would have kept him awake and alert while the thiopental still lowered his inhibitions enough to be questioned,” the medic explained. If that’s what happened, the stimulant has worn off and he’s feeling the longer-acting depressive effects of the thiopental on his system.

 

The first nagging feelings of fear crept in as Gibbs asked, “What are his symptoms? Is there anything you can do for him?”

 

“Agent DiNozzo’s heartbeat is slow and erratic. He’s dizzy, nauseous, and having difficulty staying awake. The coughing is a pretty good indicator of thiopental overdose as well.” The medic frowned as he spoke again. “I’m sorry, Agent Gibbs. I can’t in good conscience give him anything without knowing exactly what he was injected with and what dosage. I’ve started another IV to keep him hydrated and help flush the drugs from his system. There’s nothing else I can do but monitor him,” he said regretfully.

 

Gibbs nodded in acknowledgement as the medic rose and went back to continue monitoring Tony. So their adrenaline fueled escape came at a cost. The adrenaline, along with the drugs he’d been given apparently kept Tony's other symptoms hidden during the initial checkup before the plane flight back. He couldn’t help but notice Ziva looking on. Her features were composed and impassive; void of anything resembling worry. He didn’t like it but she wasn’t his primary concern right now.

 

Everything had been rushed; the questionable incursion across the border from Kenya to Somalia and the destruction of Ulman’s camp forced them to get back across the border quickly. There had been little to no time to check him properly. Now Tony was deteriorating rapidly before their eyes while they were still hours from DC, and advanced medical help. Gibbs was only too aware that they were far out over the Atlantic, with the US now closer than Europe. They could do nothing but continue on, and hope Tony didn’t get any worse.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Gibbs wanted to kick himself as he climbed into the ambulance alongside Tony’s gurney, focused on the pale, slack face partially covered by an oxygen mask. The last hour of the flight had been a nightmare. Tony had fallen unconscious on the plane and couldn’t be roused. His respirations had decreased to the point that he was barely breathing. They’d landed in Germany for refueling before the last flight leg back to DC. He should have taken that opportunity to get Tony checked by a doctor before they departed the Ramstein air base.  He hadn’t and hoped he wouldn’t live to regret the decision to push on for home. Gibbs held on and watched the EMTs tend to Tony as the vehicle careened off from Joint Base Andrews toward Bethesda, lights flashing and sirens blaring. He’d forgotten one of his own damn rules again. Never assume, always double check. Dammit, he hadn’t done it and now Tony was paying the price.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Gibbs clenched his jaw in frustration and squeezed the phone he was holding next to his ear so hard that it creaked. He’d called to update Vance, who promptly ordered him back to NCIS for a full debriefing. He tersely told the man he’d be there once he knew Tony’s condition was stabilized and not before. He ended the call and went back to stand outside the exam room where Tony had been taken, trying to see in the narrow window and make heads or tails out of the activity around his agent’s bed. He’d told the doctors everything he knew about Tony’s condition, with the medic that had flown home with them filling in the blanks before he left.

 

Gibbs was forced to step aside several times as medical staff went in and out, carrying vials of what he presumed was Tony’s blood for testing and pushing in carts of equipment he couldn’t identify.  They rushed past as if he weren’t standing there, beside himself with anxiety. Left alone and wishing Ducky was present to find out what was going on; he alternated between pacing in frustration and stopping to peer in the window. Minutes stretched into hours with no update. He considered going back into the same room he’d already been ordered out of once, until the familiar heavy clomp and jingle of chains from Abby’s boots invaded his thoughts.

 

He looked up in confusion as she approached and wrapped him in a hug. “Abby, what are you doing here?”

 

Abby bit her lip and pulled away from him just enough to look toward the door and ask “How is Tony?”

 

Gibbs couldn’t fault her for her concern, but he wanted to know why she wasn’t doing as he asked. Grasping her upper arms gently, he gave her a gentle shake to focus her. “He’s been better, Abby. You’re supposed to be with Ziva right now. Didn’t McGee tell you I wanted you to stay with her?”

 

Her eyes brimmed and she sniffled as she whispered. “Yes, Gibbs but…I can’t Gibbs, I just can’t.”

 

 _What the hell was going on now_? Gibbs thought. “What are you talking about, Abby? Why not?”

 

“Oh Gibbs…you don't know,” Abby’s voice trailed off as she shook her head in denial, but Gibbs needed to _know_ what she’d found. “You don’t know…what she’s done,” Abby stammered, tears spilling over.

 

Done? What could she have possibly done; they’d only been back a couple hours. “Abby, where is Ziva?” he insisted.

 

“Ducky examined her, and then while he was checking McGee, she disappeared,” she replied. “When I refused to take her home, Ducky planned to send her home with McGee and then come here to wait with us for word on Tony, but he couldn’t find him.”

 

Gibbs pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, trying desperately not to lose his temper with Abby. “I’m not up to a game of twenty questions right now, Abby. Take a breath and tell me why no one is with Ziva, and what she did that’s got you so upset.”

 

Abby tried to do as he asked, then gripped his hands tightly in distress as she answered. “We found out Director Vance took her to his office for debriefing after Ducky finished examining her and started to check Tim. Vance still had her with him when I left and that’s a big problem, Gibbs.”

 

Debriefing my ass, Gibbs thought. He hadn’t forgotten what he and Ducky discussed the night before they left for Africa. No matter what Vance might be cooking up with her right now, they had things to resolve if Ziva were going to stay here in the US. There was far more at stake than her obvious lingering resentment toward Tony. Ziva had yet to come clean about her part in the Rivkin disaster or how exactly she came to be in Saleem’s camp. “Go on, Abby.”

 

Abby bit her thumbnail and apprehension was clear in her voice as she answered. “Remember what you asked me to do before you left, Gibbs?” At his nod, she went on. “Well…I did, and you aren’t going to like what I found about Ziva and Director Vance. This is _bad_ , Gibbs. Very bad and you need to know before you get back to NCIS or before Vance decides to come _here_.”

 

His suspicion was immediately roused. He’d known Vance was up to something since they’d returned from Israel. He’d seen nothing overt to indicate exactly what until Ducky disclosed that Vance likely manipulated Tony into staying silent about being assaulted in Israel. Then there was Ziva. She’d been gone for months; what in God’s name did Abby find? Pulling the distraught woman over to a row of nearby chairs, he prompted her to sit. “Tell me _everything_ , Abs.”

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~ 

Tony was out of immediate danger and had been settled in a private room. Gibbs had been kicked out but Ducky managed to stay inside while Tony’s doctor did one final check on his patient before he left for the night. At least Ducky being here finally meant someone would be able to tell him in plain English how his agent was doing.

 

He looked up as the door opened and the doctor came out, followed by Ducky. The older man was smiling and Gibbs felt the last of the somber atmosphere from earlier dissipate. Tony must be doing better. “Doctor Thomas,” he greeted.

 

“Agent Gibbs,” the doctor returned with a slight nod. “I’ve been advised by Doctor Mallard that you’d be much more appreciative of his translation rather than my ‘medical jargon’ description of your man’s condition, so I’ll leave the details to him,” the doctor said wryly. “In short, we’d like to monitor Agent DiNozzo for another day or two as the drugs make their way out of his system, since thiopental side effects may be evident for up to 36 hours. Suffice it to say he will recover completely.”

 

Gibbs huffed in relief and extended his hand. “Thanks, doctor.”

 

Doctor Thomas smiled warmly as he shook Gibbs hand. “I’m very happy to have been the bearer of good news, Agent Gibbs. If you’ll excuse me,” he replied, and then headed to the nurses’ station to leave instructions for Tony’s care.

 

As the doctor walked away Ducky looked about in confusion. “Where is Abigail? She seemed quite insistent on seeing Anthony before she would leave.”

 

“They let her look in on him earlier. Right now, I need her and McGee working on something case-related,” Gibbs said, preoccupied with his thoughts.  “I’d like to see him again before we head back, Ducky. You coming?” he asked. “You can tell me about Tony’s condition and besides, there are some things I need to fill _you_ in on.”

 

Well, _that_ was certainly intriguing. “I see…such as what case-related work McGee and Abigail could possibly be doing at this hour?” Ducky smiled slyly, “Of course, Jethro.”

 

Ducky followed as Gibbs huffed and turned toward Tony’s room. He entered and stopped briefly; taken aback at the sight of all the monitors and leads trailing beneath the blankets covering the motionless man. He gave a small shake of his head and then continued over to stand at the head of Tony’s bed. Ducky smiled fondly as Gibbs reached out to the still figure and touched his cheek a moment, being careful of the nasal cannula. Then he brushed back a wayward lock of hair from Tony’s sunburned forehead and gently rested his palm there.

 

“How is he really, Duck?” Gibbs asked worriedly.

 

“Deeply unconscious at the moment; a result of the drug he was given. As it happens, the medic who flew back with you was quite correct in his intuition and assessment of Anthony’s symptoms. It was a very nasty cocktail in that injection; the blood work did indeed show thiopental and various stimulants,” Ducky explained. “Add to that the complication of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and the resulting electrolyte imbalance all brought on by too much time spent in that bloody barbaric box,” Ducky finished with an edge of indignant anger in his voice. “We are fortunate he wasn’t given a higher dosage. It very likely would have caused a complete respiratory collapse.”

 

“He could have died right there on the plane, Ducky,” Gibbs paused, feeling the heavy burden of his guilt. “There wouldn’t have been a damn thing we could have done except bring home his body. This is my fault.”

 

Gibbs’ eyes were bright and Ducky was moved by the uncharacteristic display of emotions in the normally taciturn man. “He didn’t die Jethro. Focus on what Doctor Thomas said,” Ducky reminded. “He will be fine, in time.”

 

Gibbs remained silent. He just watched Tony intently, as though he’d disappear if he looked away.

 

“Jethro,” Ducky prompted. “You’re brooding. Why? Surely you don’t think what happened out there is _your_ fault.”

 

“You remember what I told you when we came back from Israel without her?”

 

“Ah, yes,” Ducky nodded, “the unreasonable demand…her attempt to compel you to choose between her and Anthony. How is that relevant now?”

 

“I kept that from Tony. It might have made a difference.”

 

“What difference would it have made?” Ducky asked curiously.

 

“Maybe he wouldn’t have been so driven to go after Saleem Ulman if he’d known she wanted him kicked to the curb and shunned from the only family he’s known for _years_ ,” Gibbs mused. “Then there’s _me_. I should have had a doctor check him in Germany. I saw him when they pulled him out of that box; he was in bad shape. I should have _known_.”

 

Ducky shook his head. “You can’t think like that, Jethro. Besides, do you _really_ think it would have made a difference? That he still wouldn't have considered her a friend and partner in spite of it all? That he wouldn't have still felt responsible and wanted justice for her, even knowing what she said while in a state of anger and grief? You know Anthony better than that,” he chided. “As for you, there’s no reason you should have known. Trained medical personnel assessed him and found him stable at the time.”

 

Gibbs sighed, still looking a bit haunted. Ducky resolved to change the subject and help his friend shake off his morbid thoughts. “It’s not like you to second guess yourself. Besides, I believe there are other things we need to discuss, yes?”

 

Gibbs tore his gaze away from the unnaturally still figure on the bed and looked up at Ducky in confusion. Then he blinked and shook his head as if to clear it. “Sorry Duck, the last few days are apparently catching up with me.”

 

“I imagine they are. Come…let me drive you home. You can rest for a bit and come back in the morning,” he encouraged.

 

Gibbs nodded reluctantly, knowing he needed the rest. He also needed to get his head around Abby’s earlier revelations and decide how to handle Vance. He couldn’t do it if he were exhausted. He took Tony’s hand and leaned down close. “I’ll be back in a few hours, DiNozzo. Don’t let me find out you’ve been giving the nurses a hard time, you hear?” He wasn’t sure, but he thought there’s might have been a slight answering pressure from Tony’s fingers, and his heart felt a bit lighter as he turned to leave.

 

“Ok, Ducky, let’s go.”

 

As they turned to the door, Ducky reminded, “On the way, you can enlighten me as to those _things_ you felt I needed to know. I suspect there is some relation to Ziva’s tête-à-tête with the Director and Abigail’s refusal to allow Ziva to stay with her.”

 

“Oh yeah…you could say that, Ducky,” came the sarcastic reply.


	10. Chapter 10

Vance chewed on his toothpick and pondered last night’s ‘debriefing’ with Ziva David. He was satisfied they’d reached an understanding about where her loyalties should lay going forward and she knew she’d be on a tight leash. He would allow her to stay on the condition that her particular skills and intelligence contacts would be used as _he_ saw fit. In return, he would convince SecNav of her continued usefulness and ensure the truth of her actions in Israel and her acts of espionage wouldn’t come to light.

 

She seem disconcerted by Vance revealing that her father told him she’d intentionally gone to the camp in order to infiltrate it. She assured him that as far as Gibbs and the others knew she’d been a prisoner the whole time. Now he needed to verify what she’d told Gibbs and his team and find out their stance on her potential return to NCIS. He’d hoped to reinforce the connection she’d once had with Gibbs and his team by having her stay with them while she ‘recovered’ from her time in captivity. Except they’d all left the building; even Mallard and Scuito. Once he’d finished with David, he’d called and ordered Gibbs back from the hospital and the man had flat out refused.

 

Vance drummed his fingers on the desk in irritation. This morning, he was unable to locate anyone on Gibbs’ team except DiNozzo. The senior agent was still in the hospital and Gibbs, acting as his medical proxy, had issued instructions that no one be allowed to see him or be given information about his condition. McGee, Doctor Mallard, and Scuito were still not returning his messages. He suspected Gibbs’ team was circling the wagons and it made him very uneasy. Something was happening he didn’t know about, and he needed find out what it was.

 

Vance called Gibbs’ phone for the third time since he’d arrived in the office. He was prepared to give up and head over there himself when the phone was finally answered. Fortunately, he stopped himself from unleashing his temper when he heard not Gibbs’ voice, but Doctor Mallard’s cultured tones.

 

“Director Vance,” came the smooth greeting. “Can I help you with something?”

 

“Unless you can explain why no one on Gibbs’ team has followed my order to return to NCIS for debriefing, then no Doctor Mallard, _you_ can’t. Now why would you be answering his phone, and _where is Gibbs_?” he replied, making his annoyance plain.

 

“My apologies Director; Anthony’s condition was not stabilized until very late last night,” the old doctor soothed. “At the time, I observed Agent Gibbs to be in a state of stress and severe exhaustion. I drove him home and have been keeping him under observation while he rests. When he wakes, I will certainly pass on your directive to report in.”

 

Vance glowered, knowing the old doctor wouldn’t be intimidated into waking Gibbs if he didn’t see fit. “Be sure that you _do_ , Doctor,” he barked and then ended the connection.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

“Let me guess…Vance is on the warpath this morning, right Duck?” came a muffled voice from Gibbs’ sofa.

 

Ducky looked over to see a rumpled Gibbs sitting up and throwing aside the blanket he’d been huddled under. “Quite correct, Jethro,” he answered.

 

“How do you feel this morning?” he asked, watching as Gibbs rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

 

“Better, thanks. You were right; I needed the rest for what’s going down. Are you ready for this Duck? Because it ain’t going to be pretty,” Gibbs stated. “Especially if McGee and Abby find what I think they’re going to.”

 

“All too often, the right course of action is the most difficult one. This situation is no different. I will support you however I can, Jethro. What about Anthony?” he asked. “The hospital called just before the director. He is awake and asking for you. Might I suggest a visit before you confront Vance?”

 

“I’d planned on it, Duck,” Gibbs nodded. “So I’m glad to hear he’s awake. Everyone needs to be on the same page about what’s going on before I speak to Vance, especially Tony. Plus, I need to distract Vance in the short term and keep him off our backs long enough to give McGee and Abby time finish their work.”

 

Ducky tilted his head. “And Ziva…what of her?”

 

Gibbs looked grim. “That remains to be seen, Duck.”

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Gibbs reached the door of Tony’s hospital room just as his nurse came out. Worry set in again as he caught a glimpse of the younger man; he wasn’t awake. “Is he alright?”

 

“And you are…?” the nurse asked with narrowed eyes as she moved to block the door.

 

His instinctive response was anger until he remembered his own instructions that no information should be released about Tony’s condition and that only he and Ducky be allowed to visit. It was a new day and new shift; this nurse didn’t recognize him. “I’m Gibbs, Nurse…Walter,” he said, leaning to see her name tag and showing her his ID.

 

“Oh! Of course,” the nurse replied. “I was told you were on your way. Agent DiNozzo is doing better, although he may not agree,” she advised with a wry smile. “There are some lingering side effects of the drugs he was given. He’s feeling poorly and just dozing off and on,” the nurse explained as she stepped aside so he could enter.

 

Gibbs managed a smile and a nod, “Thank you, Nurse Walter.” He turned and quietly entered, not wanting to disturb Tony’s rest. He walked stealthily across the dim room and took a seat in the chair next to the bed.

 

Resigned to waiting, he was surprised to hear Tony’s soft, hoarse voice.

 

“That you, Boss?”

 

Gibbs smiled at the still closed eyes. “How’d ya know?”

 

“Smelled the coffee,” he said. One green eye opened warily, followed by the other as he spied the large cup in Gibbs hand and a second, smaller one on the side table. “ _Please_ say one of those is for me,” Tony went on in a pleading voice.

 

“One of those is for you,” Gibbs deadpanned.

 

“Think I love you, Boss.”

 

Gibbs rolled his eyes and watched as Tony very carefully sat up and adjusted a pillow behind his back. “You gonna be able to keep it down? The nurse said you were still feeling rough this morning.” 

 

“Well, it feels like quite the hangover, Boss…without all the fun of the party beforehand. Saleem wasn’t the best host, you know?” Tony quipped. “I think I’ll be ok though.

 

“Good,” Gibbs said, handing him the coffee. “It’s that overly sweet latte stuff you like,” he added with a slight grimace of distaste.

 

Tony grinned and took the cup, closing his eyes and sniffing appreciatively. He sipped carefully for a few minutes while Gibbs just seemed content to observe him as he drank from his own cup.

 

Gibbs watched as Tony set his cup aside, and faced him with a suddenly serious expression. “So…?”

 

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. “So… _what_ , DiNozzo?”

 

“Come on Gibbs. You’re here way before visiting hours and haven’t been to the office yet. Something’s up, right? Besides the obvious?”

 

 _He may feel like crap, but there’s nothing wrong with Tony’s instincts_ , Gibbs thought. But Tony was right…he was here to fill him in on one hell of a storm looming; and it was coming sooner rather than later. First things first, though.

 

“You asked for me DiNozzo; pretty much as soon as you woke up. I could put the same question to you,” Gibbs replied. “Something on your mind…besides the obvious?”

 

Tony leaned back and ran a hand through his hair. Gibbs recognized the gesture, it was one of Tony’s few ‘tells’. He was nervous or had something on his mind. Something _big_. “Tell me, Tony,” he pushed gently.

 

Tony sighed. “You know, my brains were still scrambled when we were on that plane, Boss. Couldn’t quite think straight, or make sense of this nagging feeling I had…about Ziva.”

 

Gibbs stiffened a bit, preferring not to be reminded of his fear that Tony wouldn’t make it back.

 

Tony paused, catching the sudden tension in Gibbs’ posture, but misreading its cause. “I know how you feel about her, but…” Tony hesitated, looking up uncertainly as if testing Gibbs’ reaction.

 

Gibbs shook his head. “It’s not what you think. Go on Tony, I’m listening,” he prompted.

 

Satisfied Gibbs would at least hear him out, Tony continued. “Well, some things about her behavior in that room didn’t add up, especially compared with how she acted once we were out.”

 

“And that’s got you on edge.”

 

“Well, _yeah_.” Tony said emphatically.

 

“You’re not the only one who saw some things that don’t sit right, Tony,” he reassured. “What else?”

 

“She was supposedly there for months Boss, and she really didn’t look much worse off than McGee and I did after three days. She could barely walk when we got out of the cell, but when we got to Nairobi she jumped off that chopper and walked to the hangar before the blades stopped spinning.”

 

“What exactly are you saying, Tony?”

 

“I don’t know what I’m saying. It’s just that there’s a hell of a lot of unanswered questions. Like how she got there…and _when_.”

 

“And if there’s an explanation for all this? What then?”

 

Tony’s heart sank. Was Gibbs going to make excuses for her _again_? “Playing devil’s advocate, Gibbs? Really?” he asked; his disappointment plain. “What if there _isn’t_ one?” he shot back.

 

“Then there isn’t,” Gibbs said simply. “And we do what we have to.”  
  
“Good,” Tony sat back, satisfied with Gibbs’ answer. “…because I’d like to see her explain _this_ one away.”

 

Gibbs’ brow furrowed. “Explain what?”

 

“You were watching when she was brought in and put in that chair, right?”

 

Gibbs nodded.

 

“So you saw she was hooded; and you saw where McGee was on the floor well behind her chair?”

 

“What are you getting at, Tony?”

 

Tony held Gibbs’ gaze as he answered. “I had him playing possum, Boss. He didn’t speak or move when she was brought in and I didn’t mention him. Setting aside her less than enthusiastic hello to me, she spoke to him too. By name.”

 

Gibbs inhaled sharply at the implication.

 

Tony nodded in affirmation, green eyes intense and serious. Gibbs got it now. “She _knew_ he was there, Boss. She couldn’t have seen or heard him…how did she know _anyone_ was back there, much less that it was McGee?”

 

“We’ll get the answers, but one way or the other she won’t be coming back to the team, DiNozzo,” Gibbs asserted.

 

“No?” Tony asked disbelievingly.  “What if she gives you those ‘explanations’ you mentioned? You brought her back instead of sending her home to her father…why would you do that if you weren’t considering bringing her back onto the team?”

 

“I was so relieved to see her alive…I won’t lie and tell you I didn’t consider it at first, Tony,” Gibbs admitted. “Remember what I said on the plane...that we had things to talk about? I wouldn’t have brought her back on the team without discussing it with you. I wanted to get a sense of where you stood before I go any further with this conversation. As for why I’m here so early; you were right. There’s something up and I’m glad we’re on the same page about Ziva, because I don’t want to butt heads with you over this.”

 

Tony sighed heavily. “I’m not going to like this, am I?”

 

“No, you aren’t,” Gibbs affirmed. “There have been some…developments while we were in Africa, Tony, and they put her actions last spring in a different light,” Gibbs began. “I've opened the Rivkin investigation again. No matter what we find out about what happened in that camp, she isn't coming back.”

 

“Why would you do that? It’s water under the bridge.”

 

“No, it most certainly isn’t. She never did tell the complete truth about Rivkin and her role in his activity in the US. It became moot when she stayed in Israel, and with Rivkin dead, the case was closed.”

 

“So why re-open the case,” Tony asked. “All you need is a statement from her, right? As far as the investigation and evidence, what else is there to do that wasn’t done already?”

 

“I wish that were all there were to it, Tony.” Gibbs continued gravely. “There’s evidence that Ziva was actively working with Rivkin and incontrovertible proof that she knowingly and repeatedly shared classified NCIS information with him. There’s also evidence that Director Vance covered it up. Abby and McGee are going over everything and gathering the proof.”

 

“Vance? I don’t understand, Gibbs,” Tony said, confused. “You found all this out overnight?”

 

“Not quite. I had Abby start doing some digging the night before we left.”

 

Tony narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms; clearly not pleased that he’d been kept in the dark. “What exactly set off your radar _before_ we even left, Gibbs?” he asked.

 

“ _You_ did, Tony.”

 

Tony blinked in surprise. “Me?”

 

“Anything you want to share about Vance taking you to the ER the night we got back from Israel? Or why neither of you ever mentioned it?” Gibbs asked pointedly.

 

“Ducky…” Tony muttered darkly.

 

“Was worried about you going on this particular mission and he had _your_ welfare at heart,” Gibbs finished his sentence. “It’s a good thing because God knows, we’re not sure _you_ do sometimes. Why would you keep that from me? Who were you protecting and why?”

 

Tony glared and remained stubbornly silent.

 

“All right, I’ll let it go; but only for now,” Gibbs warned.  “For my part, I’ve felt Vance was up to something since we headed back from Tel Aviv. When Ducky told me about you being injured again, I needed to know if Vance was holding it over you somehow. I wasn’t expecting Abby to find what she did.”

 

“What happens now?” Tony asked, fatigue seeping back into his voice.

 

“For now, you rest while you can. We’re going to need you. The shake up that’s going to come out of this will be big.”

 

“I need to be there Gibbs…I have to be a part of this,” Tony insisted, plucking at his IV in frustration.

 

“Leave that alone; you need it. I promise you’ll be there.” Gibbs rose to leave. “When it’s time, I’ll come get you out of here myself. For now, in the hospital, you’re safe from Vance’s questions…and from Ziva. I saw the way she was looking at you on the plane,” Gibbs said meaningfully. “I’m not convinced she can be trusted right now, and I don’t want to chance a confrontation between you two.”

 

Tony slumped a bit, remembering her demeanor on the plane and the cold, calculating looks that promised retribution. He’d naively hoped that if they could just talk, they could work things out. Now he knew that was impossible. If she’d done everything Gibbs said, she needed to be held accountable. As for talking to her, it was clear now that there was no use. She’d protect her own interests and Mossad’s, at their expense…just as she had before.

 

Gibbs spoke, pulling him from his thoughts and regrets about Ziva. “I need to report to Vance, put him off for a bit and then check in with McGee and Abby. I’ll be back for you later today.”

 

Tony nodded and then lay back down; giving in to the residual exhaustion from the thiopental. “K, Boss…not going anywhere,” he mumbled as he dropped into a light doze.


	11. Chapter 11

McGee looked up from his report as Gibbs rounded the corner into the bullpen. “Morning, Boss. How’s Tony?”

 

“Doing better, McGee. The hospital is keeping him awhile longer though,” Gibbs spoke a little louder than usual for the benefit of anyone who might be listening and reporting back to Vance. “How are you holding up?” He asked, knowing he had McGee up late working with Abby organizing their evidence against the director.

 

“Still a little tired, but otherwise good to go, Boss.  My report’s almost done and uh…the director asked me to send you up as soon as you got in,” McGee added.  

 

Gibbs acknowledged McGee with a nod and sat down to check his email. He hoped Commander Dalton had already forwarded copies of the evidence and intelligence his SEAL team collected from Saleem Ulman’s camp. He wanted McGee going over it as soon as it arrived; he and Tony would pitch in to help as soon as Gibbs picked him up from the hospital. He sighed audibly as he saw there only a brief note from Dalton letting him know to expect the information later in the day.

 

“Print off a copy of your report and I’ll take it up with me, McGee,” Gibbs directed. “Then go down and let Abby know later today we’ll have the information recovered from Ulman’s camp to start working through.” He hoped McGee would conclude that he wanted him to continue working with Abby. “Has Ziva been in?” he asked.

 

McGee shook his head as he got up to retrieve his report from the printer. “According to Cynthia, the Director put her up in a hotel when he couldn’t reach any of us last night. Want me to find her, Boss?”  

 

“Not yet,” Gibbs answered as he took the still warm pages from McGee. “After I talk to Vance, I’ll be down to see what you two have,” he said quietly as he began to scan McGee’s report.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Vance stood at the window behind his desk, staring out into the courtyard. Things were looking up for him. Gibbs’ team was instrumental in identifying and locating Ulman’s terrorist training camp, and any intelligence information they brought out would serve to enhance his position among the other heads of federal agencies. He had high hopes it would even lead to bigger and better things than the directorship of a small federal agency. It would also shift the balance of power between him and Eli; along with the video and other evidence that incriminated his daughter. He turned as he heard his office door open...Gibbs walked in unannounced as usual, the infuriating bastard.

 

“Nice of you to stop by Gibbs,” Vance began testily. “What part of report for debriefing was unclear?”

 

“Your concern for your hospitalized agent is heartwarming,” Gibbs shot back. “You knew where I was, and _why_. If getting a debrief was _that_ critical, you could have come to the hospital for a verbal report.”

 

Vance ignored the dig. “What is DiNozzo’s status?”

 

“Stable, but will remain hospitalized for a while longer due to side effects of the drugs he was given,” Gibbs reported, intentionally vague on when Tony might be released.

 

“What happened over there, Gibbs?” Vance asked. “I can’t wait to hear how Ziva and our men ended up in that camp. Start from the top.”

 

Twenty minutes later, Vance gritted his teeth in anger. It was like pulling teeth getting information from Gibbs. He’d just given a very succinct verbal report of his team’s actions in Africa and it left him with no idea if they brought out the intelligence Eli referenced. “Are you telling me you brought back no intelligence; no evidence of Ulman’s activities? What did you bring back…besides Director David’s daughter?” he asked pointedly.

 

“What’s the problem, Leon?” Gibbs asked. “You’re all about _end game_ , aren't you?  You and NCIS come out smelling like a rose in all this,” Gibbs asserted knowingly. “Thanks to DiNozzo’s legwork we found enough evidence of Ulman’s camp location to justify boots on the ground and a SEAL team on standby. One sizable terrorist training camp eliminated, prisoners freed, no casualties among the good guys, and everybody’s happy.” Gibbs went on, exasperated now, and showing it. “Oh…except you.” Gibbs tilted his head. “Why _is_ that?”

 

“We lost an opportunity to gather more intel on Ulman’s reach and whether or not there are any more of his people in the US.”

 

Gibbs was angered by his callous attitude, but they wouldn’t have to put up with it much longer. “That’s the bone you have to pick? That we didn't take the time to search the camp before we barely escaped _with our lives_? That’s _not_ what we were there to do,” Gibbs reminded him. “Still, you’ll be happy to know the SEALs _did_. We’ll be receiving copies after their people review it.”

 

Well, that was better than nothing, Vance thought. As to the other matter, he also needed to know where Gibbs stood about David. “Now...what about Ziva David; what did she tell you about why she was there?”

 

“What do you want me to say about her, Leon? I never saw Ziva until the SEALs got us out of that camp. What was I supposed to do, interrogate her on the plane back after she’d just been freed?”  

 

“I find it hard to believe she didn’t give you, of all people, any details on how she came to be there.”

 

“Well, _I_ find it hard to believe after spending several hours with her upon our return, that you don't already have the answers you seem to be looking for,” Gibbs snarked back.

 

“She explained her mission,” Vance said. “I’m just trying to find out if it matches up with what she may have told you before I consider letting her return to NCIS.”

 

“You’re bringing her back?” Gibbs asked in surprise.

 

“You asked for her, Gibbs. Said your team needed her.”

 

“Yes, I did. That was before.”

 

“Before what?”

 

 _Before your little revelation about Ari, and Eli’s orders,_ Gibbs thought. Probably best to let Vance keep thinking he didn’t believe that, and to put him off instead.

 

“Before she was taken prisoner. We have no idea what her physical and mental state may be, or whether or not she’s capable of field work. She’s also still uncomfortable around DiNozzo.” Gibbs hedged.

 

“She wants to stay and assures me she can work with him. She also agrees to undergo any psychological evaluation we require.” Vance elaborated.

 

“What about her loyalty to Mossad? I don’t need a “liaison officer” on my team again. I need a field agent.”

 

“Not an issue. She intends to resign and apply for US citizenship,” Vance said. “…on the condition that she can return to your team.”

 

 _Not a chance in hell_ , Gibbs thought. “I’ll consider it. Is that all, Director?”

 

“For now. I hope you and DiNozzo will see fit to provide more detail about the mission in your written reports, Gibbs. _Soon_.”

 

“You’ll get DiNozzo’s report when he’s fit to write one. You’ll get mine when you let me get back to work.”

 

“By all means…” Vance said, gesturing at his office door.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Tony raised an eyebrow as Gibbs led him in through the evidence garage entrance instead of the usual door off the employee garage. "So Gibbs, I guess it’s safe to assume we're avoiding Vance this afternoon?"

 

"Got it in one, DiNozzo," Gibbs answered. “There’s more to what I told you in the hospital and I want McGee and Abby to brief us on their findings together. I also don't want Vance to get wind of what we're up to until I'm ready. Basically, that would be when it’s too late for him to do anything to stop us from bringing this evidence to the chain of command.”

 

“You really think he'd try to do that, Boss?”

 

“He's already done it. You'll see when Abby tells you what she found while we were in Africa. It was damning enough that I had McGee help her keep digging. They're working from down here because Vance brought Ziva in today for her first psych eval. I’ve caught glimpses of them both lurking around; they’re probably trying to figure out what we’re doing. I don't want to lose the element of surprise.”

 

They rounded the corner behind evidence lockup to see Abby and McGee as expected. Gibbs noted Ducky and Jimmy were also there as he’d asked, and everyone was gathered around a make shift desk.

 

Abby lit up upon seeing Tony and ran forward, hugging him hard enough that Tony gasped to catch his breath.

 

“That's quite enough Abigail,” Ducky cautioned. “I'm sure Anthony would prefer not to make a return visit to the hospital any time soon.”

 

“Definitely not,” Tony confirmed with a theatrical shudder that made everyone smile.

 

“You had us all worried there for a while, Tony. I'm glad to see you up and around,” McGee said, smiling.

 

“Aw…thanks, Probie,” teased Tony, as McGee rolled his eyes.

 

“Alright, enough,” Gibbs said, waving a hand impatiently. “We’ve got work to do, people. Are you up for this now, DiNozzo?”

 

Like quicksilver, Tony’s playful demeanor melted away and he was suddenly serious. At his nod, Gibbs turned to the forensic scientist. “Abby…start from the top and summarize what you found while we were gone.”

 

The group gathered around close as Abby gathered her notes and prepared to relay her findings.

 

“Gibbs received some sensitive information which led him to suspect Director Vance was withholding information related to the Rivkin investigation and Mossad.” Abby paused, noting with interest that Ducky and Tony shared look at that, and that Tony’s expression was distinctly unhappy. _Interesting_.

 

“Anyway,” she continued, “He asked me to um… _unofficially_ check Vance’s communications between the time Gibbs and McGee returned from LA to the time the Rivkin investigation was closed.”

 

“You hacked Director Vance’s computer?” Palmer asked in shock, and then winced as McGee elbowed him and Gibbs glared his way. “Uh, forget I said anything, because you know, that’s not the important thing. The important thing is what you found and…”

 

“Mr. Palmer, you are rambling,” Ducky interrupted gently. “Commentary is not required at this time.” 

 

Palmer was blushing furiously as he replied. “Sorry Doctor Mallard.”

 

“Besides,” Abby said, “ _I_ didn’t hack Vance’s computer; McGee did that yesterday.”

 

“Abby!” McGee protested.

 

Abby gave him an unrepentant grin as she continued. “ _I_ creatively accessed NCIS’s email server and reviewed Vance’s communications there.  You really should talk to the cyber security group, McGee…it was entirely too easy to do from the inside.”

 

“Abby, get back on track. Time isn’t something we have a lot of right now,” Gibbs said.

 

Abby’s grin faded. “I found irregularities in the briefings SecNav received from the Director about the Rivkin investigation and the connection to Mossad. The NCIS reports forwarded to SecNav had been altered; forensic test results changed and information removed.” Abby’s voice became tremulous. “That’s not the worst of it,” she said, looking over at Tony and Gibbs.

 

“Altered by whom?” Ducky asked.

 

“Tell ‘em the rest, Abby,” Gibbs prompted while Tony listened expressionlessly, suspecting what was coming.

 

“Director Vance altered them before he forwarded them to SecNav. I pulled all the reports from archives and documented all the changes made to the team’s original reports,” Abby explained. “That’s not all he did; he tampered with evidence. The report discrepancies led me to test all the evidence again and re-run the prints that were collected against AFIS and international databases. I got a match on previously unidentified sets of fingerprints. The first prints were pulled off of the section of gas line from Ziva’s apartment; the part that was tampered with in order to cause the explosion.”

 

Abby took a gulp from the ever-present cup of Caff-Pow, and continued. “A matching set of prints was also found on some keys of Ibn Tabil’s laptop; the one Rivkin hid in Ziva’s apartment that Gibbs and McGee recovered after the explosion. I also found correspondence between Director Vance and Eli David about the laptop which indicated they colluded to ensure a negative result would come back from my query to the Israeli’s fingerprint database.”

 

Tony’s expression darkened with anger and disappointment. He left two police departments due to corruption in the ranks. Was NCIS going to join them? Time would tell. His eyes became icy and he steeled himself to hear details of the damning evidence that Gibbs referred to in the hospital. The evidence would not only incriminate his former partner beyond a shadow of a doubt, but bring down the director himself. Gibbs was right; there was one hell of a storm coming.

 

Gibbs couldn’t help but think back on Ziva’s actions during the Rivkin investigation as Abby relayed everything she’d told him yesterday while they waited together for word on Tony’s condition. Hindsight brought a certain amount of clarity. He could see now his judgment had been clouded at the time, swayed by sympathy for her grief over her lover’s death and his desire to give her the benefit of the doubt…just like Tony had. He recalled her coming to the lab against orders, determined to follow the investigation and see to it Tony was held accountable for Michael’s death, despite being ordered to stay away. He recalled her confirmation that the explosion was a Mossad tactic and her admission that she’d accessed the crime scene photos on McGee’s computer against Gibbs’ orders; all under the pretense of _helping_ the investigation when she was really diverting attention away from herself.

 

Then there were her overly clipped and evasive answers to his questions in the bullpen afterward. He’d taken her attitude as coming from anger and grief but now saw her demeanor as coldly defiant and defensive at the same time. He’d expressed sympathy for the loss of her home only to be told it _wasn’t_ her home. She’d been family, and they had a bond of loyalty and affection…or so he’d thought. He’d allowed that perceived bond to blind him to the circumstantial evidence against her, evidence that would have ordinarily caused him to dig deeper any other time. It was ironic that Vance himself ended up being the one to plant the seeds of suspicion that would lead to his downfall; and he would take Ziva with him. _Two birds, one bullet_ …just like Vance had said, only now the tables were turned with Vance and Ziva playing the part of the birds. Ducky’s voice pulled him from his thoughts and back to the matter at hand.

 

“Abigail, who did the unidentified fingerprints belong to?”

 

Abby sighed and put a soft, quiet voice to the other’s suspicions. “In addition to Tabil’s and Rivkin’s, the other fingerprints I found were Ziva’s.”

 

The prolonged silence was heavy and Palmer asked hesitantly, “What does all this mean?”

 

“It means that Ziva lied to us, Palmer,” Tony broke in, and edge of cold anger in his tone. “She’s been lying to us for a while. We already knew Tabil’s laptop connected to the internet from her home. She lied to us about knowing it was there. She not only knew about the laptop, she _used_ it. Rivkin may have been the one to hide it, but she knew it was there somewhere. Ziva bombed her own apartment to destroy the evidence. It also means that Vance colluded with Eli David to protect his position and hide the fact that he worked with a foreign intelligence agency to hide their illegal activities on US soil.”

 

“Thanks to McGee,” Abby added, “we have the evidence to prove _all_ of it. Getting access to Vance’s email on the server wasn’t too difficult, but breaking into his computer was another matter. I needed McGee’s help with that.”

 

Abby nodded toward McGee, who continued the report. “We found proof of the altered case reports. The Director also ordered Ziva’s workstation wiped and her profile deleted from NCIS servers right after you all returned from Israel. His mistake was keeping copies of some of her correspondence. Both Ziva and Vance have been passing information to Mossad long before Rivkin came into the picture. It also looks like Vance was collecting information about Ziva’s activities, though it’s unclear for what purpose.”

 

“To get the upper hand on Eli David would be my guess,” Tony said as Gibbs nodded his agreement.

 

“Well, there’s more, including some video files we haven’t gotten to yet,” McGee added. “According to the file metadata, some of it is from Israel. Possibly the Directors were sharing useful information.”

 

“Useful to _who_ ,” Tony asked derisively.

 

“Isn’t all this inadmissible?” Ducky pointed out.

 

“It is,” Gibbs confirmed. “But it’s more than compelling enough to force SecNav to take action to bring in the FBI and open an independent investigation. Especially once SecDef gets wind of what’s going on.”

 

Tony snorted. “Davenport will fall all over himself to do damage control and cover his ass. He won’t think twice about sacrificing Vance.”

 

“That’s my guess too,” Gibbs agreed. “Alright let’s break it up for now. We need to keep up appearances for a little while longer. Tony…go get started on your report. I’ll be up shortly.”

 

“Right, Boss.”

 

As Tony turned and headed up the back stairs to the bullpen, Gibbs spoke to the rest of the group. “Everyone but McGee, get back to work and carry on as normal. If Vance or Ziva ask, tell them you haven’t seen me and McGee has been sent home sick.”

 

“What will we be doing, Boss?”

 

McGee sat down as Gibbs pointed at the chair next to where he and Abby had been working. “We’re going to go over the few remaining files you haven’t viewed yet, and then secure the evidence until I’m ready to take it to SecNav.”

 

Gibbs rolled the other chair over and sat, watching as McGee navigated through the file directory.  “What else does the director have on Ziva?”

 

“Mostly emails between her and Rivkin. There’s also a security video clip of Ziva trying to break into the evidence lockup then taking off toward the stairs when someone else entered. From the date stamp, it was after you and I returned from her burned apartment. That day has been wiped from Security’s surveillance video archive, presumably by the director.” McGee shook his head in disbelief. “I don’t understand. How could she do this?”

 

“I believed in her too, McGee,” Gibbs said, clasping his shoulder briefly in support. “Ziva made her choices and now she’s going to have to live with them. A video thumbnail caught his eye. He squinted and looked closer, realizing he’d seen that building before. “McGee, what’s this one? It’s not one of ours.” Gibbs pointed at the thumbnail in question.

 

“I haven’t gotten to that one yet. It’s one of the files Vance got from Mossad somehow,” he answered.

 

Gibbs peered closer and sucked in a breath. Oh yes, he recognized that building alright and his gut was trying to tell him something. “McGee…I’ll take it from here. You can head home now.”

 

“Boss?” McGee looked over at him with a confused frown, “Everything alright?”

 

“Fine, McGee. Go. I’ll get Abby’s laptop back to her when I’m done.”

 

Gibbs waited until McGee left the room, and then opened the video. In the larger playback window, he could see now that the building in the video was Mossad headquarters, as he suspected. He hit play and almost immediately Tony and Ziva walked into the frame view. He watched, attention riveted on the confrontation captured on surveillance video, unable to look away.

 

Even without sound, he could see it was a heated conversation, mostly on Ziva’s part. Watching her in profile, he could see her face was white with fury, and her short choppy movements indicated barely restrained violence. As the video played on, Ziva suddenly lashed out and in blur of motion, she kicked Tony’s legs from under him.

 

Even knowing this happened months ago, Gibbs flinched as he watched an already-injured Tony crash heavily to the hot concrete. With his arm in a sling, he was unable to break his fall and soften what had to have been a jarring and painful impact. Gibbs kept watching as Ziva immediately straddled him and was horrified as she pulled a weapon and jammed it hard into Tony’s chest, then a moment later, into his thigh.

 

He thought back to Ducky’s description of the mysterious injuries Tony incurred sometime between being questioned by Eli and their departure a few hours later. He could see exactly how every single one had been inflicted and now there was no room for doubt Ziva had done it, not her father. How close had she come to pulling that trigger? _Far_ too close by all appearances. Gibbs let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding as the onscreen Ziva stood and stormed away, leaving Tony prone on the concrete and breathing harshly through the pain.

 

 _Dammit, Tony_ , he thought. _You should have told me about this_.


	12. Chapter 12

Tony was alone in the bullpen working on his report, when a shadow fell across his desk.

 

“Ziva,” he greeted without looking up.

 

“How are you, Tony? I thought you were in the hospital.”

 

“Your concern is touching, Ziva,” he replied as he continued to work, refusing to give her his full attention. “I’m fine, as you can see.”

 

Ziva stood there, taken aback by his standoffishness.

 

“Is there something else?” he asked.

 

“Why has everyone been avoiding me? Even Abby. I do not understand.” Ziva answered plaintively.

 

“Why would we avoid you? Work goes on, Ziva, just like it has all summer.”

 

Ziva’s frustration mounted with the irritating fool. Tony was intentionally goading her with his vague replies. He probably did not want her to talk to Gibbs. “I only wish to apologize; to speak with the team about returning. Yet I can find no one. Where is Gibbs?” she asked, looking over at his desk.

 

Tony finally looked up and met her eyes. “No one? Huh. Well, you found _me_. What could you possibly have to apologize for?” he asked, tilting his head at her.

 

Ziva crossed her arms defensively and said nothing, allowing a hurt expression to grace her features.

 

“Maybe you’d like to apologize for believing I killed Rivkin out of jealousy,” he offered. “Or was it for throwing me to the ground and shoving a loaded gun in my chest?” Tony's eyes narrowed as he queried, “Maybe for something else entirely?” Tony saw the flash of anger in her eyes before she composed herself again.

 

Tony was fishing now; taunting her. He knew nothing of what she’d done. She played along, ignoring his last question. “Yes, I would like to apologize for what I did to you.”

 

“Apology accepted,” Tony said, turning back to his report.

 

“Have you nothing else to say?” she demanded, annoyed by his dismissive behavior. She would not be ignored!

 

“What would you like to hear, Ziva?”

 

“ _Where is Gibbs_?”

 

“He’s around somewhere… _working_. So am I, while we’re on the subject. On another note, you are well aware that as a _visitor_ ,” he emphasized, “you can’t wander the building unescorted to find him. Speaking of which, where _is_ your escort?” Tony asked pointedly.

 

Tony remained unmoving, watching warily as Ziva’s control finally snapped. Dropping any pretense of friendly behavior, she slapped both hands down on his desk, leaned in close, and loomed threateningly. “Your attempts to keep me away from Gibbs and turn him against me will _not_ succeed,” she hissed.

 

“My _what_?” he asked in surprise, while she continued to glower down at him.

 

“Ziva,” a sharp voice came from behind him. Gibbs’ penchant for appearing from nowhere had reasserted itself at an opportune time, Tony thought.  He wasn’t sure what he would have done if Ziva’s behavior had escalated.

 

Ziva jumped and whirled to face the team lead. “Gibbs, I have been hoping for a chance to speak with you,” she said, smiling at him.

 

Her face fell as he gave her an unreadable look and answered. “We’ll talk later, Ziva.” Indicating the security guard waiting behind him, “Your escort will see you back to the lobby.”

 

Gibbs turned away from her and walked over to his desk. Tony remained expressionless as Ziva followed the guard, turning back briefly to shoot him a glare while Gibbs was still looking away.

 

“ _That_ went well,” Tony observed as Ziva and her escort disappeared from view.

 

“So I heard,” Gibbs said wryly as he sat and turned on his computer. He’d stashed Abby’s laptop in his car, not comfortable with keeping the evidence Abby and McGee collected inside NCIS, and returned just in time to see and hear most of Ziva and Tony’s conversation. Ziva still had unresolved issues with Tony obviously, and it was best they be kept apart until this whole situation came to a head.

 

“I’ll talk to Vance about Ziva slipping her escort. Her wandering around the building is a complication we don’t need right now. In the meantime, if you see her again, you don’t needle her like that. She’s unpredictable. An altercation isn’t going to help matters and will only bring attention from Vance.”

 

Tony nodded in agreement and went back to his report.

 

They'd been working in companionable silence for a while when Tony’s phone began to ring. Gibbs was only half-listening as Tony took the call, only to hang up after a brief exchange.

 

“That was Security, Boss.” Gibbs looked over at him. “Commander Dalton is here asking for one of us regarding evidence transfer,” Tony reported.

 

“Go check him in and see what he has for us DiNozzo,” Gibbs ordered, curious why Dalton opted to deliver the evidence copies in person rather than via secure transmission.

 

A few minutes later he glanced up to see Tony back in the bullpen with Commander Dalton in tow. “The Commander would like to talk to both of us, Boss.”

 

“Conference room two,” Gibbs indicated as he rose, and led the way.

 

After they were seated in the conference room, Dalton fished a flash drive out of his pocket and pushed it across the table toward Gibbs and Tony.

 

“I’m confused, Commander,” Gibbs began. “I thought you’d be transferring this information over the classified network. What’s with the house call?”

 

“That was the original plan,” Dalton confirmed. “Once we reviewed the evidence, some disturbing information came to light. I couldn’t be sure the information wouldn’t fall into the wrong person’s hands before it reached you.”

 

 _What the hell was that about_? Tony thought, mystified.

 

“My team is here in Washington for mission debriefing at the Pentagon, so it’s a simple matter to deliver the information directly to you,” Dalton explained.

 

“Exactly what do you mean by the wrong hands?” Gibbs asked.

 

“The woman we brought out of the camp with you, Ziva David. You said she was a member of your team up until a few months ago?”

 

Tony stiffened at the reference to Ziva, but remained silent.

 

“Yes, she was part of our team.” Gibbs confirmed.

 

“We were under the impression she was a prisoner in that camp,” Dalton continued.

 

“She _was._ She was captured attempting to infiltrate the camp as part of a Mossad mission,” Gibbs asserted.

 

Dalton shook his head somberly. “No,” he said simply.

 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Tony asked, breaking his silence.

 

Gibbs flicked a glance at Tony. _Take it easy_ , the look said, and he was satisfied to see the tense body next to him relax minutely.

 

“I’ll be direct. We found evidence of her activity in the camp that is questionable at best, and criminal at worst. Based on what you said about her prior role here, I wasn’t sure of her status and access,” Dalton added. “I didn’t want her to know what we found before you, frankly.”

 

“What evidence?” Gibbs asked.

 

“First, know that there is proof of what I’m about to say documented on that flash drive,” Dalton said, pointing at the drive he’d passed across the table. “Saleem Ulman apparently liked to record his interrogations and conversations with key people in his cell. There’s audio and video of your girl in there. And you, Agent DiNozzo, from just before we got there.”

 

Tony scrubbed a hand over his face. What had she done? Apparently, he’d had good reason to be suspicious of her behavior in that room, and after.

 

“What exactly did you find?” Gibbs asked.

 

“She wasn’t a prisoner there; she was _one_ of them…for weeks, if not months. She claimed to be the lover of an Ibn Tabil and wanting to join them to avenge his death. She presented herself as a Hamas sympathizer and gave a pretty damn convincing cover story. She also gave Ulman information on NCIS; mostly OSP personnel and operations. If she was there as an infiltrator, I’d say she went native.” Dalton speculated.

 

“You’re guessing,” Tony insisted. “Our physician here says she was severely beaten while there,” Tony added, trying to find justification in her actions.

 

“She was…months ago when she first appeared at the camp. I’d bet the bank it never happened again. She successfully convinced Ulman she was there to join them. He never suspected otherwise until you and your men showed up,” he said looking meaningfully at Gibbs.

 

“It’s all on the drive. Make your own judgment when you see the pictures, the footage, and hear the audio recordings.” Dalton suggested calmly. “There’s one more thing she isn’t going to be able to justify away. It’s the main reason I’m here.”

 

“And what’s that?” Gibbs asked.

 

“When word of your team’s activity in the area got back to Ulman, he became suspicious of Miss David. She got back on his good side by identifying your men as NCIS. Well, specifically Agent DiNozzo. She never identified Agent McGee by name as far as we were able to find out. She also implicated Agent DiNozzo in Ibn Tabil’s death.”

 

“What?” Tony asked in a horrified whisper. Ziva knew full well Tabil was killed by Rivkin. He knew she was angry and confused, but he had no inkling her hate and resentment for him could run that deep.

 

“She agreed to be knocked around a bit for your benefit, so she could convince your agents she was a prisoner and urge them to cooperate with Ulman,” Dalton elaborated.

 

That explained both the recent, more superficial injuries Ziva carried and the completely healed, weeks-old injuries Ducky found in his initial exam. Knowing what he knew now, he was surprised Ziva allowed it.

 

Gibbs looked over to see Tony pale with shock at the implications of Dalton’s information. He was shocked to his core as well. Now it was obvious why Tony had been targeted first when they were captured, and then treated so much more harshly than McGee in the terrorist’s camp. Ziva clearly meant for Tony to be killed by Saleem Ulman. He nearly _was_ , thanks to her manipulations. Ziva would have had her revenge and no one would have been the wiser. He’d never envisioned Ziva would go off the rails this badly, but she _had_ and all they could do was pick up the pieces and move on.

 

Gibbs looked over at Tony again to see shock being replaced by anger.

 

“Tony?”

 

“She could have gotten McGee killed with that stunt,” he gritted out angrily.

 

“And you,” Gibbs added quietly, “which was probably the point.”

 

Tony looked away, his expression bleak.

 

Dalton just watched the exchange wordlessly, knowing there was something going on here he wasn’t privy to.

 

Gibbs laid a hand on the back of Tony’s neck and squeezed gently. “Neither one of those things happened, thankfully. Let’s worry about what we _know_ happened, not what could have. I need you back in the game, Tony.”

 

Tony took a deep breath and seemed to gather himself. “I’m with you, Boss.”

 

Gibbs gave him one of those pleased half-smiles and turned back to Dalton.

 

“Thank you Commander. We’ll handle it from here.”

 

Dalton nodded in return, “Yes, I expect you will.”

 

Later, hours after Dalton had gone, Gibbs and Tony stood and stretched to work out the kinks from being seated at the computer for so long.

 

“Tony, head to my place. I won’t be far behind.” Gibbs ordered.

 

“Your place?” Tony asked. “Why?”

 

“I don’t want you at your apartment alone until Ziva is in custody. Go on,” he said, jerking his head toward the door. “I’ll grab us some take out. We’ll go over what’s next when I get there.”

 

Tony heaved a tired sigh and nodded. “See you there, Gibbs.”

 

Gibbs put the incriminating flash drive in his pocket. Every bit of information on the flash drive had been reviewed, discussed, scrutinized and argued over. He and Tony agreed; Ziva was done. Vance was done. All that was left for them to do was to bring the evidence to the FBI, SecNav and SecDef, and then wait for the fallout to clear.

 

For right now, he hoped Tony could handle one more revelation about their former team member. Too many secrets had been kept these last few months, and this particular one had his conscience gnawing at him.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Gibbs tossed the empty take-out containers in the trash and put away the leftovers while Tony wiped down the kitchen table and counters. When Tony started to wash the dishes, Gibbs stopped him. “Just leave those in the sink for now.”

 

It was time for them to talk. Tony’s increasingly pensive demeanor was starting to worry him. He grabbed two beers from the fridge and handed one to Tony.

 

“Come downstairs; there’s something I want to show you.” The younger man gave him a confused look, but followed him down to the basement without protest.

 

Gibbs led Tony over to his workbench and opened the drawer underneath. Tony looked at him quizzically when he saw Abby’s laptop in the drawer next to Gibbs’ rifle. He ignored the look, powered on the laptop, and started the video showing the violent encounter between Tony and Ziva in Israel.

 

A blank mask dropped over Tony’s face as he recognized the scene. “Stop,” he said. “ _Stop it_ ,” Tony repeated as the clip continued to play, his voice rising with emotion. “I know what happened.”

 

Gibbs nodded and stopped the video. “The question is why didn’t _I_ know, Tony?”

 

Tony ignored Gibbs’ question and asked one of his own. “Where and when did you get this?”

 

“McGee found it on Vance’s computer. Eli apparently gave it to him in order to convince us to leave her in Israel. Vance has his own reasons for keeping it. He planned to use it to keep her in line should she return; along with the evidence he collected confirming she was working with Rivkin,” Gibbs explained. “He probably planned to use her knowledge and Mossad contacts to get the upper hand on Eli.”

 

“So you didn’t know about this until a couple days ago? Not all along?”

 

“No,” Gibbs confirmed. “Although I did begin to suspect the night before we left for Somalia, after Ducky told me about your ER visit.”

 

“So why did you leave her behind then, if it wasn’t for that? Tony sounded desolate. “Vance said it was her choice, but I don’t know who to believe any more.”

 

Gibbs felt a pang in his chest at that. He hoped Tony would believe what he was about to tell him; that Tony hadn’t lost faith in _him_ too. “Why does that still bother you so much, Tony? Especially knowing what we know now.” he countered.

 

At Tony’s grim silence, Gibbs took a guess about what Tony had been thinking.

 

“You thought once she calmed down, got a handle on her grief and anger, she’d see the truth about Rivkin. She’d see you acted in self-defense and you’d be able to clear the air with her. She’d come back in a few days or weeks and things would go back to the way they were before?”

 

Tony looked down at the floor and crossed his arms as if the defensive posture could ward off Gibbs’ words.

 

“You didn’t tell me what she did because you didn’t want to be the reason she couldn’t come back, right? Maybe you didn’t think I’d believe it?”

 

Tony nodded; his expression pained.

 

“You’ve got _nothing_ to feel guilty for. Even if she hadn’t betrayed our trust, it was _never_ going to happen that way, Tony.”

 

“Why not? He asked stubbornly.

 

Gibbs took a deep breath, hoping this would bring Tony out of his dark and melancholy mood.

 

“The day we left Israel, there on the tarmac, Ziva did something you never would have. She gave me an ultimatum, Tony…you or her on my team.”

 

“She… _what_?” Tony’s mind was reeling; Gibbs left her because of _that_? And Ziva…what the hell was she thinking? She was a traitor and wanted _him_ off the team. Then there was Gibbs; he hadn’t known what Ziva had done at the time, _none_ of it. Gibbs owed Ziva his life from the very beginning, when she’d killed Ari to save him. Their big _secret_ ; which Gibbs only revealed to him so Tony would accept her on the team in the first place. He’d been dead set against working with the woman who’d helped Ari target them; helped kill Kate, but relented when Gibbs revealed she’d killed her half-brother to save him. Gibbs and Ziva had a strong connection; a bond from the start and if he were to be honest with himself, it made him insecure of his own standing with Gibbs from time to time.

 

“You chose me,” he mused wonderingly, looking up again and meeting Gibbs’ eyes.

 

Gibbs gave him an indulgent half-smile. “There was _never_ a choice to be made, Tony, and if she were thinking straight at all, she would have known better.” He went on apologetically, “I should have told you all of that long before now; made sure _you_ knew it too.”

 

Something that had been off-kilter inside him slotted back into place. He smiled at Gibbs and said simply, “Well, _now I_ _do_.”

 

Gibbs could almost see the gloom lift. There was loyalty, gratitude, and affection in the clear, green gaze. Reassuring Tony of his place in Gibbs’ life, making it clear that his loyalty and affection was acknowledged and returned, had been the right thing to do. Tony was going to be okay.


	13. Chapter 13

~Two Days Later~

 

Gibbs stood across from Vance’s desk. The wheels had been set in motion and now it was time for the chickens to come home to roost, as his father used to say. _Fathers_ , he thought. That was the only regret he had in this whole thing; that Vance had children and their father would soon find himself disgraced. That Ziva’s father, having learned nothing from his experience with Ari, turned her into something irredeemable.

 

“So Gibbs, what did you want to see me about?” Vance inquired.

 

“Your appointment later this morning,” he stated simply.

 

The director gave him a sharp look. “I didn’t realize you had such an interest in my daily calendar, Gibbs. Am I to assume the fact that I have a meeting with SecNav has something to do with you? I thought we had an understanding.”

 

Gibbs smiled coldly and shook his head. “You shouldn’t have tried to hide it from me, Director. I might never have felt the need to look any further if you hadn’t.”

 

“Hide what? What are you talking about, Gibbs?” Vance asked, though he was beginning to get a sinking feeling. One that told him exactly what was happening here; and the reason for the strange behavior of Gibbs’ team since they returned from Africa.

 

“What happened to DiNozzo in Israel,” Gibbs confirmed. “I always suspected you had an agenda, Leon, but I thought you had at least _some_ principles. You don’t…you’ve become corrupt,” Gibbs said, making his disgust plain. “I told you I wanted to trust the person that sits in this chair; I wanted to trust _you,_ Leon.”

 

“What did she tell you?” Vance asked, trying to buy time by casting doubt on Ziva. “She’s been lying to us; I have proof.”

 

“ _You_ told us everything we needed to know, and _we_ have proof, Gibbs replied, throwing Vance’s words back at him.

 

“You investigated me? Who the hell do you think you are?” Vance shouted. 

 

“I’m someone who knows damn well you betrayed not only every man and woman in this agency, you betrayed your country,” Gibbs fired back. “You allowed yourself to be put in a position to let a foreign intelligence agency determine your actions and coerce you into divulging sensitive information.”

 

“You don’t have anything that will be admissible in court, Gibbs. If I know you and your team, everything you have was obtained illegally,” Vance contested with a smug expression. “SecNav won’t even give you the time of day if you bring this to him.”

 

Gibbs shook his head in disbelief at the man’s arrogance. “That’s why SecDef has also been informed of the appearance of _improprieties_ related to your directorship, and why there’s a pending FBI investigation,” Gibbs countered. “I expect you’ll be hearing from Tobias soon,” he added with a smug smile of his own.

 

Vance was stiff and silent, anger radiating from every pore.

 

“Let me guess; you’re thinking SecNav is going to intervene on your behalf.” Gibbs shook his head. “Your ambition and arrogance led you to bet on the wrong horse, Leon. Davenport can’t save your ass this time…not without implicating himself. You really think he’s going to do that? Shepard started this mess a long time ago with Ziva, but _you_ own it now. You deserve every damn bit of what’s going to happen, _Director_.”

 

Gibbs turned and walked to the door, looking back over his shoulder to deliver his parting shot. “You enjoy that title and this office while you can…I don’t think you’re going to have either for very much longer.” 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Vance looked on, helpless and humiliated as FBI agents emptied his file cabinets and disconnected his workstation. They packed everything methodically and fixed evidence labels to all of it. _How did it come to this_? He asked himself.

 

Secretary Davenport stood nearby watching stonily. “Is this what you call getting your house in order?” he asked. “We could have made good use of your contacts in Mossad, Leon. What possessed you to conceal the true facts of the case and hide the fact that Eli David directed his officers to conduct Mossad ops on US soil? You retained his daughter as liaison, and she passed US classified material to Israel on _your_ watch.”

 

Davenport sighed ruefully. “I gave you a long leash and room to run this agency as you saw fit. You did a lot of good here, but the fact remains you took it too far, for no other reason than personal gain. You’ve made one hell of a mess Leon, and there will be consequences,” he warned. “You stood on your own, and now you’re going to fall on your own.”

 

“What happens next?” Vance asked his one-time benefactor in an uncharacteristically uncertain voice.

 

“You are on paid leave pending the outcome of the FBI investigation.  If you’re very lucky, SecDef will want to avoid a public black eye and you’ll be allowed to retire quietly, but I wouldn’t count on that,” Davenport advised.

 

“Termination and further legal proceedings against you aren’t outside the realm of possibility,” he continued. “The Deputy Director will be here to take over shortly and I want you gone. As soon as the FBI is done here, Security will stand by while you pack your personal items. Then you’ll be escorted from the premises. Don’t plan on coming back,” Davenport said, a note of finality ringing through loud and clear in his voice.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Ziva drove toward Gibbs’ home, incensed at the circumstances she found herself in. A friend at the Israeli embassy had informed her hours ago that a federal warrant had been issued for her arrest. She wondered what the US government could possibly know. Did NCIS have anything to do with this, or was it her father’s doing; an attempt to force her back home?

 

Nothing had gone the way she expected since her return to the US. She’d thought she would be welcomed back; that they would be sympathetic to her ‘ordeal’ in the camp. Once their transport arrived at Joint Base Andrews, she'd hoped to stay at Gibbs’ home, as he’d allowed Tony to do on several occasions in the past. Before she could ask, he'd hurriedly reassured her that they would talk later before climbing into the ambulance and riding to the hospital with Tony, she recalled with irritation.

 

As soon as she’d arrived at NCIS, accompanied by McGee, she’d been left with Ducky for a medical examination. He treated her with caring and professionalism, but his demeanor was distinctly lacking the warmth and charm she’d come to expect from the elderly doctor. Ducky had thought to send her home with Abby for the night, so she wouldn’t be alone after her ‘ordeal’ only to be politely, but flatly refused.

 

Just as Ducky offered to ask McGee, Director Vance arrived and insisted on debriefing her. By the end of that conversation, Ziva realized the price she would pay for staying in the US would be to work for Vance. His implications of blackmail should she step out of line made her situation plain. If she stayed, she would be free of her father and Mossad, but she’d simply exchanged one puppet master for another. It was a price she was more than willing to pay in order to stay here and pursue citizenship.

 

Her first task had been to go about ingratiating herself to Gibbs and the team; including _DiNozzo_ , she recalled with distaste. The Director made it clear she would be expected to work with him. However, for days she had been frustrated in her attempts to speak with Gibbs and the others. After her brief encounter with Tony, she’d begun to suspect they were intentionally avoiding her and she was sure it was Tony’s doing. 

 

Now, with law enforcement in the area on the lookout for her, she needed answers and to call in a few debts; including a rather large one owed by Gibbs. Thanks to that same embassy friend, she’d been supplied with a car, phone, and funds a few days earlier. The vehicle carried diplomatic plates and she hoped that would ensure her continued freedom of movement. Stymied in her attempts to talk to Gibbs by phone, and ignoring calls to return from the embassy, she took a chance on driving to his home in Alexandria to seek his help.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Tony needed to move and burn off some excess energy while he waited for Gibbs to return from his meeting with Fornell. He’d cleaned upstairs and now focused on the basement. _Jeez, when was the last time Gibbs swept up down here?_ He thought as he worked his way across the dirty, sawdust covered floor. He paused to listen as footfalls above caught his attention. Not Gibbs’ heavier tread; who was it?

 

He was only mildly surprised to see Ziva appear at the top of the stairs. He was amused to see Ziva jump upon seeing him step out of the shadows in the corner where he’d been sweeping. 

 

“Ziva,” he greeted.

 

“What are _you_ doing here?” She asked derisively.

 

“Unlike _you,_ Ziva, I was invited. The better question is why _you_ are here.”

 

“I am here to see Gibbs, not you. It is no concern of yours.”

 

Tony’s voice was hard and cold as he fired back. “Oh, I think it is. I have to wonder why you aren’t high-tailing it for the embassy. You know, to avoid being apprehended and arrested like the common criminal you are.”

 

Tony tensed as Ziva’s eyes narrowed, and he watched as one hand moved behind her back.

 

“I do not have to answer to _you_ for my actions,” she declared.

 

“Maybe not…but you’ll answer to _someone_. To think I felt guilty you were left behind; that I felt we had a responsibility to get justice for your death,” he said bitterly. He’d needed closure and it was coming in an unexpected way.

 

“You _should_ feel guilt. You have caused all of this,” Ziva shouted. “You murdered Michael; you turned Gibbs and the others against me!” she accused.

 

Tony was incredulous. “What about what _you’ve_ done? We know, Ziva…all of it. In retrospect, you never stopped being a good little Mossad soldier, did you?” He retorted. “What else did you hide from us? What the hell Jenny and Vance were thinking allowing you to stay, I’ll never know,” he mused. “You know, there was a time I could, and would have helped you, Ziva.”

 

“I do not need _your_ help,” Ziva spat.

 

“So you came here for Gibbs’ help, right? He might have helped you once too…before Somalia, Israel, and Rivkin. All you would have had to do was ask. We _both_ would have,” Tony said regretfully. “You should go while you still can, Ziva.”

 

“I suppose you think you will stop me? Unlike Michael, I am not drunk.”

 

Tony stiffened and he tightened his grip on the broom he was holding as Ziva brought a hand from behind her back. A knife glinted in the dim light of the basement.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

 

Gibbs pulled into the driveway only to find the garage entrance partially blocked by an unfamiliar vehicle. He parked alongside and got out for a closer look. He caught sight of the diplomatic plates and was immediately on alert when he realized the country code on the plates indicated Israel.

_Ziva_.

 

He checked his weapon and moved quickly and quietly inside through the kitchen door; closest to the basement. Gibbs hovered just outside the doorway listening to the exchange between Tony and Ziva. Things were going south in a hurry when he heard Tony urge her to leave.

 

_“You should go while you still can, Ziva.”_

He knew it was time to intervene when he heard Ziva’s reply,

 

_“I suppose you think you will stop me? Unlike Michael, I am not drunk.”_

 

Gibbs chanced a look around the doorframe and was shocked to see Ziva holding a knife threateningly.

 

“You going to finish what you started, Ziva?” Tony taunted. “Off me right here in Gibbs’ basement? Not your brightest move lately.” Tony’s eyes were like ice when he spoke again. “I’m not going to just stand here and take it this time, Ziva,” he warned.

 

“You’re not going to have to in any case, Tony,” Gibbs stated firmly as he stepped on the landing and made his way down the stairs.

 

Ziva flushed at being caught off guard and sheathed her knife as Gibbs looked on coolly.

 

Gibbs gave Tony a meaningful look and jerked his head toward the stairs.

 

Tony hesitated, giving him a raised eyebrow. He knew _“You’ve got to be kidding me”_ was written all over his face _._ He got the ‘Gibbs stare’ in return.

 

Finally, Tony huffed in exasperation and started up the stairs, giving Ziva a wide berth. He glanced back down at Gibbs from the landing with a look that said, “ _Fine, but I’m not going far,”_ then disappeared through the doorway.

 

Ziva watched the wordless exchange with narrowed eyes, annoyed by the easy, non-verbal communication between the two men.

 

“Why are you here, Ziva?” Gibbs asked.

 

“I have been trying to talk to you for days, Gibbs, about returning to work. I do not understand what is happening. I need your help to clear up these misunderstandings,” Ziva pleaded.

 

“Misunderstandings,” Gibbs repeated. “Uh-huh.” Gibbs crooked a finger and Ziva followed him to the work table where Abby’s laptop still lay. He opened the lid and the screen came to life.

 

“Gibbs, what is this?” she asked in confusion.

 

“So Ziva, you can explain everything that’s happened and then I’ll help you clear up these _misunderstandings_ , is that it?” 

“Of course I can…and you have done so before, have you not?”

 

“Yes, I have,” Gibbs confirmed as he navigated to the video and prepared it to play. “So you give us a reasonable explanation, then you come back to the team. You think as long as there is a reasonable explanation, we welcome you back with open arms?” Ziva flinched as Gibbs shoved the laptop in front of her and hit play. “Explain, Ziva.”

 

Ziva watched impassively.

 

“I was angry then. I am not any longer,” she lied brazenly.

 

Gibbs snorted inelegantly. “You expect me to believe that after I walk in to see you threatening Tony with a knife?”

 

“Tony has used this to turn you against me,” she accused.

 

“No. Tony and I didn’t know about this video until a couple days ago. It came from Vance, who got it from your father.”

 

“He goaded me, but I would not have harmed him.”

 

Gibbs pointed at the video. “Like you didn’t harm him _there_? And what about in the camp?”

 

Ziva inhaled sharply and wrapped her arms around herself, feeling suddenly cold. She wondered how much Gibbs knew.

“Gibbs, no,” she shook her head in denial. “You do not know what it was like there, what I had to do to stay alive,” she said brokenly.

 

“Are you saying you were a prisoner?”

 

Ziva decided if she were going to convince Gibbs, at least _part_ of the truth was in order. “My father coerced me into this work. I would be released from Mossad and freed to live my life as I chose if I completed Michael’s mission. What was I supposed to do, Gibbs? I had no choice but to accept. It did not go as planned…yes, I was a prisoner.”

 

Another lie. “I can’t help you, Ziva.”

 

“Why, Gibbs? I told you I could explain everything. If you don't help, I will be arrested.”

 

“You _should_ be, Ziva.”

 

Ziva played her last remaining card. “You owe me your life, Gibbs. Have you forgotten?”

 

“No, I haven’t forgotten. That’s why I’m willing to let you leave now; to go to the embassy where you can’t be arrested and you’ll be able to make your way back to Israel.”

 

“Gibbs, please. You are all I have,” she persisted.

 

“ _Stop_ ,” Gibbs said harshly. “You only have one father and it isn't me. What did you tell me on the tarmac in Israel? You couldn't work with anyone you didn't trust.” Gibbs voice rose in anger and disappointment. “I trusted you; accepted you when I had endless reasons not to. I let you in, made you part of my family, Ziva. You put Rivkin and Mossad over all of us and tried to cover it up. You firebombed your own apartment and tampered with evidence to hide your involvement. You had the _gall_ to ask me to choose between you and Tony, knowing what you’d done.”

 

“I was loyal to you, Gibbs! But I also had to be loyal to my father.”

 

“I can’t believe I was so blind,” Gibbs chided himself. “I never asked you to betray your father to prove your loyalty, Ziva. You _chose_ to betray us when you could have chosen to do neither. You earned my loyalty, my trust by shooting Ari and I find out that you did it on your father's orders…just like _everything_ you’ve done since.”

 

Ziva gasped at that. “Gibbs, no.” She shook her head in denial. “It was not like that.”

 

“No? How was it then, Ziva? Before you lie to me again, there’s something you need to know. Were you aware Saleem recorded some of his interrogations?”

 

Ziva paled. It was over; Gibbs knew everything.

 

“That’s right.” Gibbs went on relentlessly. “I know exactly how you got into that camp and what you did there. Tony and McGee could have died because _you_ gave them up. I also know that you tried to manipulate Saleem into killing Tony to satisfy your need for revenge, and you very nearly succeeded. You implicated Tony in Tabil’s death, when you knew it was Michael’s kill. Why would you do that? Do you hate him that much?”

 

Ziva’s control broke under the onslaught of accusations. “Yes!” she shouted. “He is to blame for everything that has happened!”

 

“You actually think I can help you knowing all this? That I can trust you now to watch my six? To watch _Tony’s,_ when you so clearly hate and resent him? Tony was never anything but loyal to you, Ziva. We _all_ were. You threw that away and you have no one to blame but yourself.”

 

“Gibbs, please,” she entreated once more.

 

“No. You need to go now; to the embassy like Tony said. I could help you, but the fact of the matter is _I don't want to_. You chose your father and Mossad over us first. After all you’ve done, there’s no coming back from that. I don’t know where home is for you any more Ziva, but I do know it isn’t _here_.

 

Tears welled in her eyes as Ziva turned and ran up the stairs. As she entered the kitchen, she froze. Tony was seated at the table, a cup of coffee cradled between his palms. She faced him, tears streaming, but didn’t trust herself to speak. He watched her calmly for a brief moment, and then said the only thing that was left to say between them.

 

“Goodbye, Ziva.”


	14. Chapter 14

Epilogue

* * *

 

~Bullpen, the following week~

 

“So DiNozzo, you got a recommendation for me yet?”

 

“Yes, Boss. I was just waiting for her to confirm she was interested. I only heard back a little while ago. Don’t even need to do an interview.”

 

“Is that so?” Gibbs asked doubtfully. “McGee good with it?”

 

Tony nodded, pulling open a desk drawer and sorting through the personnel files he’d spent the week reviewing. He pulled one out and set it on the desktop.

 

“So, are you planning on keeping me in suspense, or are you ready to tell me who your recommendation is to join the team?”

 

Tony walked over and handed him the personnel file with a smirk. “She’s looking for a move back to HQ. I think she’ll be a great addition, _and_ as an added bonus, we already know you don’t make her cry,” Tony joked.

 

Gibbs rolled his eyes. He opened the folder and nodded with an approving smile. It looked like Cassie Yates would be heading up from Norfolk to join the team soon. “Good choice, Tony.” The younger man beamed as he headed back to his desk and sat down.

 

“Oh, hey Fornell,” Tony greeted as the FBI agent exited the elevator and approached the bullpen. 

 

“I see Gibbs is keeping you here late, DiNoteso,” he snarked good-naturedly. “I don’t see McGee; you in the doghouse for something?”

 

“You here for an official reason, Tobias, or are you just here to wind Tony up?” Gibbs asked from his desk.

 

Fornell sobered. “The former. I thought you’d both want to know Ziva resurfaced finally. She was apprehended last night just outside the Israeli embassy grounds. She’s being held on charges of espionage.”

 

Gibbs watched Tony carefully for signs he was upset over the news or dwelling over Ziva’s plight, and saw none. He seemed to be taking it in stride.

 

“Her father pitching a fit?” Gibbs asked.

 

“Oh, yeah,” Fornell drawled. “He’s pushing the State Department hard for deportation,” Fornell added. “Hard to tell which way they’re going to lean at this point.”

 

“Any news on Vance?” Tony asked.

 

“The investigation is still ongoing. At best, he’ll get forced retirement…at worst, jail time.”

 

Tony nodded. “Thanks for letting us know, Fornell.”

 

“Yep. Anybody up for a bourbon or three? I’m buying…Jethro?”

 

“Nah; not tonight, thanks, Tobias,” Gibbs said.

 

Tony shuddered melodramatically at the thought of Gibbs and Fornell’s rotgut.

 

“Alright, I’m gone. Don’t keep the kid here all night, Jethro,” Fornell called as he walked away. “It’s Friday night, ya know.”

 

Tony grinned and looked at Gibbs expectantly, almost bouncing in his chair.

 

Gibbs suppressed a smile at the younger man’s antics and made a shooing motion. “Get outta here before I change my mind.”

 

As Tony snatched up his backpack and disappeared into the elevator within seconds, Gibbs pondered the recent upheaval and the changes it brought.

 

He shook his head at all the duplicity, and where it got them. A series of betrayals, lies, and omissions going back years; Vance’s, Ziva’s and his own had set recent events in motion. Even Tony had hidden things from them all. He could have lost Tony and McGee both in Africa because they’d all kept things from each other. He _had_ lost Ziva; to her anger, resentment, and her divided loyalties. But there was no sense brooding over things that were out of their hands. Ziva and Vance were no longer in the picture.

 

There was still fallout to be dealt with. There would be for some time with Vance under investigation and a new director coming in, but not all the changes were bad. They were moving on better than before and there was an absence of tension in the bullpen that he hadn’t realized was there. Tony was more settled and focused. McGee was more self-assured and assertive. His agents were working together better than ever, and both men already had a rapport with Cassie.

 

Yes, after the drama and intrigue of the last six months, there was something to be said for fresh starts.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~


End file.
